Phoenix's Eye: The Guild Next Door
by Fenghuang0296
Summary: Magnolia's a big city. Far too big for just one wizarding guild to call it home. At the other end of the city, another guild hall lies, with its own wizards, its own stories, and its own identity. So, how about it? Do you want to join Phoenix's Eye? Part 1 of the Phoenix's Eye Trilogy.
1. Welcome to Phoenix's Eye

Chapter 1: Welcome to Phoenix's Eye

Magnolia, a vast and sprawling city, home to one of the most prestigious guilds in Fiore: Fairy Tail. A title which, admittedly, they hold mostly due to their destructive tendencies. But a lucky few know that in the year X784, the city of Magnolia is home to not one, but two wizarding guilds. While Fairy Tail is definitely the more famous of the two, the other is not to be trifled with.

At the other end of Magnolia, as far away from the ocean as possible, rests a towering building, three storeys tall with a five-tall tower adorning one corner and a banner draped across the front, bearing the logo of an eye surrounded with feathers. This is the guild hall of Phoenix's Eye, where a certain young man is returning home after a long day's work.

"Aww yeah. It's good to be home," a blonde boy grinned, gazing up at the guild he called himself a member of with light brown eyes. "Right, Kit?"

A ghostly white fox materialised, perched on his shoulder. While his body was predominantly white, streaks of red ran from his eyes to the base of his neck and down his tail. "Right, Pierce!" he slyly shouted in his ear.

Pierce spluttered and jerked away, causing his spiritual companion to lose his grip and fall to the ground in a heap. "Jeez, Kit. I told you not to do that," he frowned, folding his arms.

Kit picked himself up, shaking himself out. "Sure, I'll stop. When it stops being fun," he huffed.

"Why do you fall, anyway? You're a yokai, can't you, I dunno, hover or something?" the blonde wizard skeptically folded his arms.

"Maybe out in the wild I could. But here, with your Beast Tamer Magic forcing me to conform to normal physics? I wish," Kit huffed. "Come on, let's get inside," Woth that, the fox stalked away, entering the guild hall.

"Wha - hey, wait for me!" the wizard shouted, dashing after him.

"Why should I? I'm a member of the guild too," the yokai slyly smirked, rolling onto his back to reveal the red guild emblem of Phoenix's Eye on his underbelly. "If I wanted, I could take on jobs all by myself,"

"Yeah, see how far you get without me," Pierce retorted, showing his own blue guild mark on his palm in retribution.

"He's got you there," a voice echoed across the hall. A somewhat fat boy with a mop of black hair, the same age as Pierce, who was hefting a silver boombox on his shoulder, grinned. "Nice to see you're back,"

"Good to see you too, Boomer," Pierce greeted him.

Kit, seeing the two human wizards were distracted, grinned and jumped towards the newcomer. His already-translucent body became almost invisible, before vanishing into Boomer's 'weapon'.

The sound system suddenly came alive, blaring heavy-metal music all across the hall. Boomer's eyes widened and he frantically turned his attention towards his machine, frantically trying to switch it off.

"Kit, is that you again?" Pierce demanded. "Cut it out; we don't want _her_ on our case again,"

Obediently, Kit left the machine, but the damage was done. "Boomer! What have I told you about playing your music within the guild hall!" a furious voice demanded, and its owner, a tall, angry woman with short black hair, wearing green and yellow Japanese robes, stormed up to them.

"But it wasn't me! It was Kit!" Boomer weakly protested, looking around for the fox spirit.

"Oh, so you're complicit in this?" she continued, looming over Pierce with a dark look in her eyes. "No, not really. You know I can't control him," he shook his head.

"Really? Because I thought that's exactly what your magic is supposed to do," she frowned.

"Lay off him, Hare. You know he doesn't like using that level of control," one of the guild's other members reminded the woman.

Hare's image vanished for the briefest second, and suddenly the offending member was sent flying out of his seat. "Any other objections?"

"Yeah," the man who had just been sent flying onto the table groaned. "You just ruined my lunch!" Sure enough, the squashed remains of a jelly sandwich we're currently plastered all over his trousers. "You'll pay for that, Hare! Origami: Swan!" With the flare of magic, a giant paper crane appeared out of nowhere and slammed into the kimono-clad woman, throwing her into another table full of wizards.

All of which immediately decided to take vengeance on Hare and the paper wizard alike. And none of which particularly cared that Boomer and Pierce were in their way.

"Sonic Shield!" Boomer shouted in a panic, and a sphere of vibrating air appeared around him. Pierce, on the other hand, had no such protection, and was trampled to the floor as a group of angry patrons decided to take vengeance for their fallen foodstuffs.

Kit reappeared next to the fallen Beast Tamer wizard, chuckling to himself. "So, still enjoying being home?" he chuckled.

Pierce looked up, just in time to see the entire hall dissolve into a chaotic fight. He smiled. "Wouldn't have it any other way, Kit. You wanna join in?"

"Hell yeah!" the yokai grinned. A wooden flute appeared in the blonde's hand by way of Requip, and he pressed it to his lips, before throwing himself into the fight.

In the corner, a teenage girl, a brunette wearing a blue dress, wailed, "Oh, why did I join this guild again?"

"Because, take it from me, Fairy Tail's even worse," her companion, a tanned woman with dark hair smirked. "I come over here to drink in peace,"

"Kana, you have a very interesting idea of pe - whaargh!" the girl shrieked and ducked as a chair came flying towards her head.

"You think this is bad, Eve?" Kana snorted. "You've never met Natsu, have you?"

"I don't think I want to," Eve shook her head.

Pierce came flying through the air and crashed into the wall beside them, before sliding down it and landing in a heap. Kit soon followed, slamming into the floor at his feet.

"You see? In Fairy Tail, they would have been thrown so hard that they went through the wall," Kana shrugged at Eve.

"Maybe I should wait outside," she gulped.

Suddenly, tendrils of fire washed throughout the room, grasping every combatant and pulling them apart. "What is the meaning of this?" a voice boomed, with a slim figure looming over the crowd from the second floor. "I go upstairs for ten minutes and already a fight breaks out? How dare you . ."

"We're sorry, Master Feng!" the entire guild chorused. The tall, elderly woman glared at the members of her guild, before a small smile crossed her face. "How dare you start a fight . . without giving me the chance to join in? Cowabunga!" she shrieked, leaping from the balcony and entering the fray, as her ropes of fire dissolved, and the brawl continued in earnest.

"We can't let the Master show us up like that, right Kit?" Pierce grinned. "Let's get 'em!"

"Hah, you said it!" Kit smirked, and the two rejoined the fray.

"I should definitely wait outside," Eve gulped.

"You do realise that the fight is between us and the door, right?" Kana asked with a small smile.

"Mummy," Eve gulped.

Yes; while Phoenix's Eye lacked the prestige and history enjoyed by its neighbour and rival Fairy Tail, they made up for it in sheer determination and attitude . . . if not restraint.

"Oh, yeah, Kit, it's good to be home," Pierce grinned.

~P's E~

"I just wish we could stay longer," Pierce grumbled on the train.

"Well, it could be worse," Kit shrugged. "We could be in there with them," he bobbed his head at the next compartment over; where the distinctive sounds of someone being violently sick could be heard.

Pierce nodded. "I feel bad for that guy," he admitted. "Just wish we could put down more money, then we wouldn't have to take so many jobs,"

"Well, you do specialise in a magic that doesn't really pay well. Maybe you should become a shaman?" Kit half-sarcastically suggested.

Pierce frowned, imagining himself in a large, wide robe, with a creepy-looking staff that had a skull on the end and a ball between the skull's jaws, instead of his normal get-up with a blue shirt that bore the Phoenix'a Eye crest, brown pants and sandals, with a black backpack. "Naah, can't see it,"

"I still think you could dress a little more impressively. People might take you a bit more seriously then," the yokai pointed out.

"Like what? An ugly scarf and a vest that leaves my chest bare? Naah, I may not look great, but it's comfortable," Pierce retorted.

"Whatever. Where are we going, anyway?" Kit asked.

Pierce fished the flyer out of his bag. "There's a cerberus haunting a forest near a village at night. It's being a menace to the locals, so it needs to be gotten rid of,"

"Ooh, you think we might be able to tame it?" Kit eagerly asked.

"Maybe," Pierce shrugged. "And what do you mean, we? I'm the one who does all the work when I tame new monsters,"

"I provide verbal support," Kit claimed.

"More like verbal abuse," Pierce rolled his eyes.

A knocking on their compartment door interrupted them. "Come in," Pierce waved, not that the person on the other side of the door could see it - unless they had x-ray vision. Actually, could a person have x-ray vision? It was worth looking into - and the door opened, revealing a blonde girl in a blue outfit. "Excuse me, sorry to interrupt, but do you have any barf bags we can borrow?"

Pierce was at a loss for words, seeing the beautiful lady.

Kit registered his expression and snorted. "Sorry, nope. And even if we did, I think I'd need them more,"

The girl looked over in surprise and her eyes widened. "Hey, is that a Celestial Spirit? she asked Pierce in excitement.

"'That' can talk, thank you very much," Kit snorted from his seat.

"Uh - no, he's a yokai. And no, no barf bags," Pierce answered with a slight stammer.

"Oh. Okay. So, not to be rude, but what's a yokai?" she asked, before pausing. "Oh, uh, I'm Lucy," the wizard introduced herself.

"Pierce," he replied, before spotting the guild mark on her hand. "Hey, you're with Fairy Tail? Cool. I'm in Phoenix's Eye," he admitted, showing her his own mark. "And a yokai is a kind of animal or monster spirit, who usually hassles humans for their own enjoyment. As a Beast Tamer wizard, I can befriend monsters, including yokais like Kit, and then summon them to help me in battle,"

"Oh, so it's kind of like Celestial magic. Neat," Lucy smiled, before a retching noise interrupted them. "Sorry, I really should go help my friend. Nice talking to you!"

"You too," Pierce sheepishly waved as she left.

Kit chuckled as soon as the door closed. "What, are you in love now?"

"Shut up. And no, I'm not. Besides, you know how Celestial Spirits and yokais feel about one another," Pierce sighed.

"Don't remind me. I could feel the animosity from her keys," the fox snorted.

"I'll definitely never forget my run-in with that Karen person a few years back," Pierce shrugged. "But anyway,"

~P's E~

"So, how exactly do you plan to find this cerberus?" Kit asked. The two were traipsing through the forest outside Damonion Town, the village being terrorised by the cerberus they had been hired to take care of.

"Well, I'm honestly not certain about the situation. The mayor seemed awfully ungrateful. We should have threatened to let them stew," Kit cruelly grinned.

"Hey, you know how it is. As a Beast Tamer, I'm more empathetic to monsters than most. Odds are that anyone else who could have taken this job would just kill the beast without even trying to get rid of it any other way," the blond shook his head.

"Niceness won't pay the bills," Kit warned. "But you didn't answer my question?"

"Oh, that," Pierce requipped his flute and pressed it to his lips. He played a quick tune on his flute, causing the yokai to transform into a streak of energy that was rapidly sucked back into the flute Pierce carried. He then played a soft, crooning melody, and the end of the instrument began to flash, before expelling another translucent shape. This one was somewhat humanoid, but hunched over, and mainly lupine, with only vague resemblance to a human, covered in brown fur with a spiky black mane running down his back, with a short tail and long, vicious claws on hands and feet. Notably, the werewolf was a lot more solid than Kit's ethereal form.

"Morning, Knox," Pierce greeted the werewolf.

Knox sniffed the air, looking up into the forested canopy. "It's daytime," he growled. "You know I prefer to be around at night,"

"Well, sorry to wake you. But I do need your help," Pierce shrugged. "There's a wild cerberus somewhere in these woods, and the mayor of a nearby town has asked for a wizard to take care of it. I'd rather that be me, instead of some trigger-happy tinpot,"

Knox nodded, considering this. "Alright, fine," he growled, getting down on all fours and sniffing at the ground. "I guess I do owe you,"

"You paid that debt a long time ago," Pierce shook his head.

"It's a life-debt. Those aren't the kinds of debts you can pay," Knox responded, still sniffing. "I think I've got something," He offered his broad back. "Want a lift?"

The Beast Tamer carefully mounted the werewolf's shoulders. "You good?" Knox asked.

"Yep," his passenger agreed.

And with that, the monster shot off, rushing through the forest in search of his quarry, twisting and looping in his path as he followed the scent and Pierce holding on for dear life as he did.

"We're almost here," Knox reported, seconds before arriving in a clearing.

A clearing that contained a very big three-headed dog. All three heads growled, each'z eyes focused on the intruder. "Time for you to make a departure, Knox," Pierce commanded, and the werewolf nodded. The wizard played a quick, three-note tune on his flute and the wolf vanished.

But, since Pierce had neglected to get down first, he immediately collapsed, falling to the ground in a heap. The monster at the other end of the clearing made a rumbling noise that sounded suspiciously like it was laughing at him as he picked himself up, still holding his flute, and played another, longer tune. Kit immediately emerged, the ghostly white fox landing expertly as he flew out of the flute. "Yikes, that is a big dog," he immediately gulped.

"And you are a small fox. Quit whining," Pierce cast him an unimpressed look; before turning his attention to the monster who looked like it was considering how best to eat him. "Excuse me; sorry to bother you, but the townspeople that you've been harassing sent -"

"Terrorising," the middle head growled.

Pierce paused. "Pardon?"

"Harrassing is an understating insult," the left head snorted. "We've been terrorising them," the right one reiterated.

"Right, terrorising. Well, they sent me to get you to stop. So, eh, could you do that?" Pierce suggested.

The three heads of the dog looked at each other. As one, they all burst out laughing. Eventually, the middle one recovered enough to smirk; "And what are you going to do if we say no?"

Pierce looked at Kit. "Well, you heard me. I asked nicely," he smiled. "I guess I'm gonna have to do this the hard way," He raised his flute.

"What are you gonna do?" the right head asked. "Sing us to death?" the left agreed.

Pierce began to play. The tune produced was soothing, a crooning, lyrical noise that shook everyone who heard it to the core, and to the cerberus, it was an irresistible lullaby. It rose and slowly walked forwards, entranced.

"That's it! No monster can resist the magic flute!" Kit grinned.

But then, the right head shook itself, regaining its senses. It knocked into the middle one, who came to, and then awoke the left one in a similar manner. "What trickery is this? You shall pay for this insult with your life!" it roared, all three heads in unison.

"Shit," Pierce gulped, and stopped playing the lullaby. With a quick tune, Kit was returned to the flute, and the wizard dodged a mighty swipe from the monster. In an instant, he played another tune, and a blazing orange portal opened at the flute's end. He tune was fiery, fast-paced and unrelenting, and naturally the monster he summoned was the same. A massive blast of flame rocketed out of the hole, soaring into the sky and revealing a shape amid it. The Cerberus reared back in shock, looking up in horror. "What kind of wizard are you?" it demanded.

"I'm a Phoenix's Eye wizard. As for why I chose that guild in particular to be part of," Pierce grinned, as his oldest friend, beating her wings, descended to hover above him. "I didn't join it for the Sunday tea parties,"

"And thank god for that. I don't like tea," the phoenix above him declared. "Is this beast causing a problem for you, Pierce?" she asked.

"It's more of an inconvenience," the Tamer wizard shrugged. "Raya, do your worst,"

"With pleasure," Raya smiled coolly, before inhaling.

"This is bad," one of the cerberus' heads gulped.

"Go, Solar Blast!" Pierce commanded, and the phoenix obeyed, unleashing a torrent of flame from her beak. When the fire cleared, the grass underfoot had been scorched, and the cerberus' black fur looked heavily charred as it collapsed to the ground.

Raya landed, looking down at the human wizard. "Well, that was boring," she huffed. "I'm going home. See you, Pierce," she declared, vanishing and returning to the flute.

With a quick melody, Kit reappeared. "Wow, Raya really gets the job done," he nodded, looking at the unconscious monster.

"You can say that again," Pierce nodded. "Do you think we should bother taming him?" he asked, gesturing to the cerberus.

"Well, do we have much choice?" Kit replied. "You know that the mayor won't pay us unless we can prove you took care of the monster,"

"You're right," the Beast Tamer nodded, raising his flute once again and starting up the lullaby once more. As if by its own volition, the cerberus' body begsn to drag itself towards him. A portal opened at the end of the flute, and the monster began to push itself into it, eventually being swallowed up and compacted into the flute. "I still think that's creepy," Kit observed.

"Oh, shut up," Pierce snorted, before immediately beginning to play again. Knox emerged once more, and Kit vanished back into the flute. "Lemme guess, you want a lift back to town?" the werewolf asked.

"If you wouldn't mind," Pierce nodded.

"Get on," Knox agreed with a shrug.

~P's E~

"So, you took care of the monster?" the mayor asked.

"Yep," Pierce nodded.

"Can you prove it?" he skeptically queried.

In response, the Tamer moved to the doorway, before playing a ditty on his flute. All of a sudden, fifteen tons of unconscious dog were crammed into the man's cramped office.

"Ah, yes - very well done, very well done," the mayor nodded, his voice muddled by the fact that he was talking into a monster's rear end. "Now, if you'd mind getting rid of it once more, I'll be happy to pay you,"

~P's E~

By the time Pierce returned to the guild hall, after the admittedly short job - seriously, it took more time to ride the train there and back than to actually complete the job - it was twilight and the guild was closing up.

"How was the job?" the bartender, a kindly brown-haired woman in the guild's employ asked. She wore a loose blue dress, and smiled with a polite wave.

"All fine, Sarah," Pierce nodded.

"It was boring, really," Kit shrugged.

"Well, not all jobs involve saving the world, but they're all important to someone," Sarah pointed out.

"I know," Pierce nodded.

"Headed home?" Sarah questioned.

"Yeah, I think so," the blonde nodded. "Just wanted to stop by on my way home, make sure everything was alright,"

"Well; nothing seems to be a problem at present," Sarah shrugged. "So, tomorrow?"

"See ya then," Pierce agreed. "Come on, Kit," he commanded, turning to leave.

"You don't tell me what to do," Kit retorted, perching on a table and obstinately refusing to move.

"Fine, spend the night here. Enjoy it!" Pierce jokingly called as he left. Sarah followed, leaving the door slightly ajar.

Kit's resolve lasted for all of five seconds. "Wait for me!" he wailed, chasing after his wizard.

~P's E~

"It'll be nice to be home. We've been out for a while, so hopefully there isn't too much dust on everything," Pierce commented as he walked down the street towards his house, which ran alongside the river.

"Yeah, agreed. Of course, you just had to take that extra, quick job straight after getting back from one that lasted a week," Kit rolled his eyes as he trotted near Pierce's heels.

"It looked urgent. You know I always take jobs dealing with wild monsters as quickly as possible," Pierce shook his head.

"Whatever," Kit rolled his eyes, but paused. "Hey, isn't that the girl from the train?"

"What are you -" Pierce looked down the street, and blinked. "It is her. Hey! Hey!" He immediately ran off, dashing towards her.

"Oh, hey, you're that guy I met on the way to Duke Everlue's. Pierce, right?" Lucy blinked in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"Going home," Pierce replied. He looked down and saw a tiny being that resembled a snowman, complete with carrot nose, hiding near Lucy's legs.

"Oi, don't run off like that!" Kit protested, desperately trying to catch up. He froze, seeing the snowman, before crouching down and growling.

The being panicked, frantically trying to hide behind Lucy's legs. "Oh, uh, I don't think your fox likes Plue," she blinked, scooping up the being.

"He's a Celestial Spirit, isn't he?" Pierce sighed, retreating to stand with Kit. "Celestials and yokais really don't get along," he shrugged.

"Really? Huh. Well, I guess we'll just have to be careful around one another," Lucy shrugged. "Well, my house is just here, so, see you when I see you?"

"You too, Fairy," the Beast Tamer nodded, before pausing. "Wait, your house is here? That can't be right, because my house is just . ." He gulped, and both wizards realised the same thing at the same time.

"We live next door to each other?" Lucy blinked. "I did not see that coming,"

Pierce blinked, processing this. "My new neighbour is a Celestial Wizard," he said, feeling the words out in his mouth.

"No she isn't!" Kit shouted. "Because we're moving!"

 _~P's E~_

 _It's time for Doctor Kit's Documentaries on Phoenix's Eye!_

 _"Welcome, everyone, to DK's Ds," Kit grinned. "Today, I'll be talking to you all about my master and best friend, Pierce!"_

 _"Pierce is a Beast Tamer wizard. He uses a magic flute to charm monsters into obeying his every command. He also has the ability to tame monsters;'by playing a special tune he can suck them into his flute. There's a sort of magic pocket world in there, where the tamed monsters can do whatever they want without fear of being hunted by humans. It's a very appealing option to many monsters who would otherwise be hunted down and killed, just for being monsters. Then, when Pierce needs help, he can summon the monsters inside his flute to help out, empowering them with his own magical energy in the process. I guess, objectively, it's kind of similar to Celestial magic, but if you think about it, it's pretty different too. For one thing, there's no ugly keys involved,"_

 _Kit spiked to a different blackboard that showed the previously used diagram of Requip Magic. "Pierce is also capable of basic Requip magic, though I've only ever seen him use this as convenient place to put his flute, which means he never has to worry about it getting lost or stolen, and it's always quick to hand. No messing around pulling it out of pockets,"_

 _The yokai paused as the fax machine next to him rattled into life. "Huh? It appears that we have a question that 'needs to be answered before people ask it', so, apparently shortly after coming up with this kind of magic, the author realised that it's very similar to something called 'Pokemon'. I'm not really sure what that is, but I have to say that these similarities were not planned and are entirely coincidental. Alright then. Catch ya later!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **Another day, another story attempt. I have no idea how far this'll go, though hopefully it'll work out.**

 **Also, one thing I want to make clear from the get-go; I'm writing for my own benefit. I use this site for fun and for practice, and I have never felt any obligation to continuously and/or regularly update my stories to satisfy my fan base. So please don't moan and gripe about how long updates take. I have other stories to work on, not to mention that I am focusing my efforts mainly on my own original novels, so please, just accept the story for what and how it is and don't beg for more.**

 **Sorry about that. I've had bad experiences in the past with people who moan like that, and I needed to get it off my chest, and to make sure everyone who reads this knows it. Sorry again.**

 **Peace!**


	2. Shellshocker, the Metal Menace

Chapter 2: The Shellshocker

At Kit's insistence, Pierce was up early the next morning and headed to the guild hall. The unfortunate yokai had suffered a long, sleepless night at the hands of his own Celestial paranoia, and was eager to get a move on.

And, unfortunately, he wasn't the only one. "It's about time you got here. What took you?" Hare demanded as soon as Pierce walked through the doors.

"It's the crack of dawn, and I'm already early. Thanks to a certain paranoid yokai," Pierce complained.

"Get something to eat. As soon as Boomer gets here, we're leaving," Hare declared, holding up a job flyer.

"And we're leaving so early why? The, uh, Shellshocker will still be there in the afternoon," Pierce read, reading the flyer. The job request stated that a bandit calling themself the Shellshocker had set up camp near one of the most commonly used trading routes in Fiore and orchestrating hit-and-run attacks on every merchant they saw. Several reports indicated that the so-called 'Shellshocker' used some kind of machinery, most likely some kind of magic-mobile, and the job specifically requested that a team of at least three wizards be dispatched to deal with it.

"I would take this job by myself, but the job requires three wizards, and it appears that you two's sorry hides are my best options for a _team_ ," Hare spat the word out like an insult.

"Uh, you know, Kit counts as a wizard. No need to drag Boomer into this," Pierce suggested.

Hare laughed in derision. "And do you think anyone'll take me seriously if I turn up with a talking fox ghost in tow? I'd get laughed out of town. And no one laughs at me," she glowered.

"Okay, we'll wait for Boomer," Pierce gulped.

"Good. Get some breakfast, this'll be your only chance,"

The Beast Tamer immediately rushed to the bar and began ordering, thanking the Yokai King that Sarah was already at the guild hall, to open it at five in the morning. The chefs weren't in yet, but the faithful bartender didn't mind whipping him up something.

"Can you make that a double helping? I plan to save something for Boomer," Pierce requested.

"Don't I get to eat?" Kit complained.

"Maybe when you actually have a stomach to digest food, you will. As in, never," Pierce shook his head.

"Selfish human," the ethereal white fox growled. Sarah affectionately petted him,

making sure not to carelessly pass her hand through his head, as she began to cook up a pair of bacon and egg sandwiches.

"Hey. You can't talk to me like that, I'm your master," the wizard joked with a wry grin.

"Like you'd ever actually use that flute on me," Kit shook his head, uninpressed.

An hour later, Boomer staggered in. "I got a note saying to be here early, what's this all about, Pierce?"

That was when Hare loomed out of the shadows cast by the door, blocking his escape. "We're leaving, now. Come on, Pierce," she demanded, grasping the collar of Boomer's yellow shirt and dragging him out of the door. Knowing he couldn't abandon Boomer to this fate, and, more to the point, that Hare would come after him if he didn't follow, Pierce sighed, scooped up the sandwich he had saved for Boomer, beckoned to Kit to follow him and went after them.

~P's E~

"So, why us? There's loads of wizards who are surely better choices than us in the guild," Pierce questioned from his seat in the train booth.

"Yeah, dudette. What's the deal?" Boomer agreed, sitting next to him.

"Well, all the better options were either busy or 'above me'. How could someone be above _me_?!" Hare fumed in her seat opposite the boys.

"Think the fact that she's a psychopath has anything to do with it?" Kit whispered in Pierce's ear.

"Shut up, she'll hear you," Pierce replied from the corner of his mouth.

"But regardless. I assume you have studied the assignment?"

"How would we have? I first heard about it when you dragged me onto the train!" the Sound wizard protested.

Hare ignored him and shook his head. "There is a bandit named Shellshocker, who seems to operate using some kind of magic-mobile, plaguing travellers on one of the smaller roads leading to Croacus. It's our job to capture him. I'd be taking the job myself, but apparently for some reason the job mandates at least three people," she growled.

"And we're the unlucky accomplices," Boomer groaned. "You couldn't have let me get breakfast?"

"Well, I got Sarah to make you a sandwich," Pierce offered.

The portly wizard grinned. "Ooh, gimme!"

~P's E~

The train arrived in Croacus, and Hare wasted no time dragging her team to a car rental service. "Alright," she declared, standing outside the gate. Pierce and Boomer lay at her feet, exhausted. "The plan is that we rent a magic-mobile from this pile of scrap, hightail it to Highway 35 and take a nice, leisurely cruise down the road,"

Pierce blinked. 'Leisurely' was not a word get he associated with Hare. He inquisitively inquired into this specification.

"We need to look tempting. Too good a target for the Shellshocker to pass up. If we go rattling down the highway at top speed he probably won't even be able to keep up! And I won't accept any failures like that, understand?!" Hare demanded, clenching her fist. "Forwards march!" With that, she stormed into the rental outlet.

"Ah, welcome, young lady. Are you looking to rent or purchase a vehicle? Because I can offer you some very good dea - erk!" The unfortunate shopkeeper, in the middle of offering the wizard his sales pitch, was unfortunately cut off by her seizing his collar and lifting him bodily into the air. "Where is your most unsuspicious-looking car and how much are you going to charge me to rent it for the day?"

The man gulped. "Uh, unsuspicious-looking? That's a pretty vague description, would you mind being a litt-"

"I'm not hearing an answer!" Hare barked.

"R-right this way, ma'am. I think I know what you're looking for,"

The unfortunate man guided his assailant to a slightly rusty green car in the corner. "Very unsuspicious-looking, in my opinion. And it's your colour, too!" he weakly suggested.

The kimono-clad woman regarded it, unimpressed. "I suppose it'll do. How much to rent it for for the day?"

"For you, just five thousand jewels," the man replied, hastily snatching away the sign marked '$8,000/day' on the windscreen. "Really?" Hare glared.

"Does four thousand work?"

"Fine," she snorted, taking out her purse and removing a quartet of $1,000 bills. "Alright, you two slackers! Time to get moving!" she declared, bundling Pierce and Boomer, yokai and boombox in tow respectively, into the back of the car.

"I wish you two the best of luck," the shopkeeper whispered as Hare climbed into the front seat, attached the SE plug to her wrist and started the vehicle.

It tore away at once, ricocheting off a nearby truck and carving a fresh dent into its side, before hurtling out through the gate. The man watched them go in dismay. "Well, at least it wasn't Fairy Tail," he sighed. "I just wish I had the nerve to ask her for reparations,"

~P's E~

Pierce heaved himself to the window and pushed his head out, his cheeks swollen. "What's the deal, man? I've never known you to get motion-sickness," Boomer questioned as a slick of vomit emerged from Pierce's mouth.

"Normally, I don't. But with Hare driving?" the Tamer moaned, cutting himself off as another trail of puke emerged from his mouth.

"Fair enough. Luckily, I have an iron stomach," Boomer weakly bragged.

"Kind of makes me glad I don't have a stomach at all," Kit noted from his perch on the window. The magic-mobile suddenly bucked, rising onto two wheels as it took a turn on a dime, sending the yokai flying back into the compartment.

"Stomach of iron, stomach of iron," Boomer repeated the phrase to himself like a mantra.

In the distance behind them, someone smiled. "Paydirt,"

The first the Phoenix's Eye wizards heard of this was when one of the car's back wheels spontaneously blew out, coming free of its axle and spinning off the road. "Pull over! Now!" a voice demanded.

Hare, smiling to herself, obeyed, guiding the damaged vehicle to a halt and getting out of the driver's seat. "Who's there?" she demanded.

A feminine figure wearing a silver and blue metal helmet, and covered head to toe in a matching robe, appeared in the treeline, walking out. "Thanks for not running. I'd hate to have to catch up,"

"You're that bandit. The Shellshocker," Hare questioned.

"That's me. Hello," the person bobbed her head in recognition. "Now, you're going to give me everything you have, and I'm going to let you live,"

"That's what you think," Hare shook her head.

Boomer pressed his head to the glass. "Here it comes. Hare's Speed magic. It lets her move faster than blinking. Combine that with her martial arts mastery, and most opponents are on their knees before they know what hit them," he narrated.

"Yeah, I know," Pierce replied.

Hare smirked and vanished, blurring towards their opponent - and suddenly she was sent flying backwards. The Beast Tamer and Sound wizards gasped, seeing that Shellshocker had thrown a punch in her direction - and, midway through the punch, her arm had metamorphosed into a giant silver club, with a piston that had delivered the stunning blow. "What, some paltry magic? Pathetic. Nothing can stand up to my TechType magic,"

"What is that? Some kind of Take-Over?" Boomer whispered.

"Whatever it is, Hare can't beat it by herself. Let's go," Pierce retorted, climbing over Boomer and pushing the door open. He Requipped his flute, and pressed it to his lips.

"Unless that's Zeref's Lullaby thing, I can't see how a piece of wood will help you," Shellshocker buffed. "But if you really want to play for me -" She cut herself off as a portal opened at the end of the flute, expelling something a lot more threatening than music.

Amid a torrent of fire, Raya emerged. Beating her wings, the phoenix glared down at their opponent. "Good morning, Pierce," she smiled.

"Hey, I want a piece of the action too!" Boomer shouted, emerging from the car. "Use your sound magic to speed Raya up," Pierce suggested. "Like I'm gonna listen to you. Sonic Boom!" Boomer shouted, and a wave of sound flew from the boombox he was carrying, physically throwing Shellshocker back.

Seconds before the torrent of fire Raya launched from her beak could torch their adversary, causing her to miss entirely. "Hey!" both wizard and monster complained.

"You would have missed anyway," Boomer denied.

"Where's Kit when you need him?" Pierce moaned, knowing that the yokai would be far better than either him or Raya at tearing into their comrade for this latest blunder.

"This is a joke, surely. TechType: Gatling Gun!" The girl's left arm transformed into a silver machine gun encased with blue playing, and, supporting it with her right arm, she lifted it and fired into the sky. Raya moved, soaring into the air to dodge the hail of bullets.

"She's open! Sonic Boom!" Boomer declared, blasting a wave of noise.

"TechType: Force Field!" Shellshocker retorted, transforming her right arm into a glowing shield emitter. A magical plasma shield erupted around her, deflecting Boomer's attack. "No way!" he gasped.

"Stand still, you dumb bird," the bandit huffed, her stream of bullets chasing Raya across the sky.

"How strong do you think that force field Is?" Pierce questioned.

"Hare could probably break it," Boomer suggested.

"If she weren't out cold," the Beast Tamer wizard pointed out, gesturing to their unconscious leader.

"Well, we could wake her up," his teammate continued his train of thought.

"Do you _really_ think that's a good idea?" Pierce demanded.

"Good point," the black-haired wizard sighed.

Raya swooped overhead, chased by a hail of bullets. "Starting to get tired up here!" she called.

"We're working on it!" her wizard snapped irritably. "I can't summon anyone else while you're out here, remember? And we can't break the force field. And if I call you back, then Shellshocker will turn her gun on us before I can summon someone else,"

"But she can't do that as long as your bird is around, because turning the gun away from her will give the bird the opportunity to break the force field and roast Shellshocker," Boomer reasoned.

"'The bird' has a name," Pierce frowned. "But I see your point. It's a stalemate,"

"I think I can shield us from her for about half a minute," the Sound wizard offered. "I've been working on a new technique,"

"Do it," Pierce nodded, raising his flute.

"Sonic Shield!" Boomer laid the boombox face-up on the floor in front of them and channelled magic energy into it. It burst to life, throwing up a wall of vibrating air. Seeing that it was working, Pierce began to play, sucking Raya back into the inside of the flute. "Hurry things up," Boomer requested, still crouched behind the boombox.

Pierce started a new tune, ripping open a portal with his flute. "Any time now," Boomer requested.

"Sorry," Pierce said between notes. "She's," "A," "Bit," "Shy,"

But finally, a great, heaving mass emerged - and continued to emerge, long, sinuous tentacles extending in every direction, and a massive, arrowhead-like body following the eight appendages.

The gunfire died, Shellshocker stepping back in shock at the summoned monster. "What the hell is that?"

Boomer gasped. "Right . . . forgot you had one of those," he nodded frantically as his sound shield died.

The monster, revealing a single, massive eye on either side of its body, reared up, flexing ts eight tentacles menacingly - and took one look at Shellshocker before scrambling away, fruitlessly trying to hide behind the Beast Tamer wizard. "She's scary," the kraken bleated from the beak on the side of her body. Or, rather, the beak was on the front and the eyes were on the sides.

Pierce reassuringly patted the baby cephalopod. "Don't worry, Inky. You'll be alright, I'm right here,"

An inquisitive tentacle wrapped around his arm, and he gently patted it. "It's alright, it's alright," he soothed the kraken.

The Shellshocker cocked her head inquisitively. "What exactly is going on?"

"Inky's a baby kraken. She's a bit shy, but - oh, whoa, we're going up, are we?" Pierce frowned as a tentacle wrapped around him, lifting him up and depositing him on top of Inky's head. "It's okay?" she chirped, leaning her head backwards to make sure that Pierce had purchase.

"It's okay. Now, see that girl over there? She's a meanie, and she needs to be punished. Like we practised," the Tamer coaxed his friend.

"Okay!" the kraken chirped, lashing out with her tentacles. Shellshocker gulped. Kraken were some of the most dangerous creatures out there. How had this wizard managed to get one for a pet? And now she was facing it down . . . poop.

A single blow destroyed her force field, her right arm changing back into flesh. She fired the gun that was her left arm, but the bullets pinged off the beast's thick flesh ineffectually.

"TechType: Tectonics!" Both of her arms transformed into silver clubs containing drilling pneumatics, and she flung them forwards. Each one was caught by two tentacles apiece, but another couple lashed out and caught her legs, lifting her into the air. As much as Shellshocker struggled, she couldn't get free.

"Good girl," Pierce smiled, sliding down from Inky's head and walking towards their assailant. "Now, let's see who's behind the mask," he decided, climbing onto one of his friend's tentacles to reach and taking a grip on the metal faceplate of the bandit.

But no matter how hard he pulled, it wouldn't budge. "Please stop," Shellshocker requested.

"Why? I want to see your face," Pierce continued.

"It's not a mask. It's TechType: Helmet. A spell," the blue-haired bandit testily informed him.

"Right. So, you gonna ditch it?" Pierce requested.

Shellshocker spent another moment struggling, before giving up. "Fine," she sighed, and her mask vanished, revealing a tawny brown face with blue eyes.

The Tamer blinked in surprise. "Huh. You're -"

"An immigrant. I know," Shellshocker sighed, looking down. Pierce had been going to finish the sentence with 'very pretty,' but decided not to interrupt. She spotted the guild mark tattooed on his hand. "You're a guild wizard. What's that like for you?" she asked.

"It's awesome," he replied, stepping down. "If I get Inky to let you go, will you keep fighting?" he questioned.

"No. You beat me. I guess it's prison for me now," Shellshocker sighed.

"Maybe. Why are you doing this? Robbing people?" Pierce asked.

"Because I don't have much choice. I'm an immigrant. Everyone just sees me as lazy, mean and good-for-nothing. I can't even get a job anywhere. If they're only gonna see me as a criminal waiting to make a move, then there's no point in trying to be any different," Shellshocker sighed.

"Well, did you try joining a guild?" Pierce suggested.

"Like, a wizard's guild? As if they'd want me any more than anyone else on this sorry continent," she snorted in response.

"Well, miss Shellshocker, you never know," Pierce shrugged. "Phoenix's Eye is a pretty diverse place. I'm sure we'd have a place for someone like you. You should stop by Magnolia sometime,"

"Ahem," Boomer interrupted. "This is all good and well, but she's still a criminal, and we still need to bring her in," he pointed out.

Pierce paused, climbing down. "You're right. I suppose we do, don't we?" Requipping his flute again, he played a quick tune. "See ya!" Inky waved, before vanishing back into the flute.

"I mean, it would be so very unfortunate if the bandit Shellshocker were to disappear into the forest after we wizards defeated her. And I'm certain that people would be extremely upset if no one were to hear from the Shellshocker ever again. And maybe if, a few days later, a mysterious girl who bears a passing resemblance to the missing bandit were to arrive at the Phoenix's Eye guild and apply for membership, it could easily be disregarded as mere coincidence. Indeed, were the wizards tasked with capturing the Shellshocker to claim that they accidentally inflicted a fatal wound, and there's no possible way that the Shellshocker could have survived for more than a couple of days, then, well, that would be that, wouldn't it?" the Beast Tamer shrugged.

"You . . really? But there's no way you'd get paid after that," Shellshocker blinked, steadying herself after being dropped.

"There's more to being a guild wizard than just getting paid, right?" Boomer shook his head. "After all, it's not like there's any shortage of jobs,"

"I . . . I . . thank you," Shellshocker nodded. "I'm half convinced that this is a dream and I'm just unconscious after being knocked out by one of your attacks, heh," she admitted.

"Nah. My music would have woken you up if that were the case," the sound wizard shrugged.

"I guess you're right. Well, I suppose I'll be seeing you," Shellshocker nodded. "Into the trees I vanish, mortal injury in tow, heh," Win that, she turned and ran into the trees, quickly vanishing among the shrubbery.

Watching her go, Pierce played a ditty on his flute and Kit emerged once more. "So, what did I miss?" he asked.

"Tell ya on the way back," his wizard shrugged. "For now," He looked at the beaten-up magic-mobile, which had taken several stray shots from both Shellshocker and Inky. "We're gonna need you to possess the car. That's the only way it'll drive,"

"What are we doing about her?" Boomer asked, gesturing at Hare's unconscious body.

"Oh yeah. I almost forgot her," Pierce nodded. "Eh, let her stew. She'll get back to the guild eventually, and we'll just have to save some of the reward money for her. If we get any,"

"You know she won't like this, that we aren't bringing the bandit in," Boomer warned him. "Especially since we're inviting her to join the guild instead,"

Pierce chuckled. "Who says we're gonna tell her?" he asked.

~P's E~

Three days later, Pierce and Kit were having lunch in the Phoenix's Eye guild hall when a slightly familiar face walked in through the open doors. The entire guild paused as a brown-skinned girl, wearing a blue vest and silver trousers that left her arms bare, with blue hair done into a ponytail, calmly walked straight through the entire guild hall, stopping at the bar. "Excuse me?" she asked, waving to get Sarah's attention. The non-wizard waitress moved over. "Hello. How can I help you?" she smiled.

"I have it on good authority that this is a wizarding guild. Is that right?" she questioned.

"Yeah, it is. Why?" Sarah replied.

The girl took a breath to compose herself. "My name's Tyria Zechtian. I'd like to apply to join the guild,"

 _~P's E~_

 _It's time for Doctor Kit's Documentaries on Phoenix's Eye!_

 _"Welcome back to another episode of DK's Ds!" Kit grinned. "Today, I'll be telling you about Shellshocker, or, as her real name is, Tyria!"_

 _"Tyria is a user of TechType magic, a very new and, currently at least, rarely seen kind of magic. It involves temporarily changing the body of the user into various kinds of combat machinery, such as guns, force field generators, and even things like jetpacks and bikes," Kit explained, showing clips of Tyria using her TechType magic._

 _"Tyria's also not a native of Fiore, instead she hails from one of the other continents of Earth Land, and immigrated, kind of like Bisca in canon. You can tell this by the way that her skin is sort of browny-black-ish, instead of the usual beige-yellow white of normal people skin," he continued._

 _"Well, that's all for now. I might follow this up as we find out more about the mysterious newcomer Tyria,"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **And I decided to post the first two chapters at the same time. Like it? ^^**

 **So, the weird way my mind works is that each of the main-focus characters in Phoenix's Eye is an 'equivalent' to the canon main heroes. Pierce = Natsu, Boomer = Gray, Hare = Erza, Kit = Happy and new addition Tyria = Lucy. Not to say that these characters are necessarily supposed to be reminiscent of their Fairy Tail equivalents, of course. There's plenty of originality in my characters, not to mention the inevitable counterpart to Wendy (who, FYI, is not Eve).**

 **Especially since, by virtue of living in the same city, they're all bound to run into Fairy Tail sooner or later. The climax of the Phantom Lord arc and the entirety of the Battle of Fairies and Phoenixes and Oracion Och arcs in particular. XD**

 **Anyhoos. Peace!**


	3. Moving In

Chapter 3: Moving In

"So, you want to join Phoenix's Eye?" Feng, Guild Master of Phoenix's Eye, a tall, slim, elderly woman who wore a loose red martial arts uniform to complement her loose-hanging grey hair, regarded Tyria with interest.

"Yes, ma'am - uh, master?" the TechType Mage stammered.

"Well, in that case, I have two questions for you," Feng declared. Tyria gulped.

"What colour do you want your guild mark in and where do you want it?" she smiled.

"R-really?"

"Master!" Sarah interrupted. "It's a little more complicated than that," she shook her head, folding her arms impatiently.

"Oh, of course. You aren't a violent criminal or anything, right?" Feng cheerfully smiled.

Tyria gulped.

The barmaid groaned, stepping out from the bar and taking Tyria's hand. "How about you come with me, and me and Fernando can get everything paperwork-related sorted out?" she suggested, waving over a slim man with orange hair and a large hat.

~P's E~

"So, you decided to join after all," Pierce smiled as Tyria took a seat next to him, proudly showing off the new pink guild mark on her shoulder.

"I guess there was no reason not to. And I didn't have anything better to do anyway," she shrugged.

"Fair enough. Oh, by the way, this is Kit. He's my sidekick," Pierce casually introduced the vulpine yokai perching in the table next to him.

"Yeah, I'm his - wait, whaddya mean, sidekick? I'm no sidekick!" Kit protested.

"He's certainly feisty," Tyria nodded, chuckling. She picked up the sandwich that Sarah had prepared her while she got the official matters out of the way. "So, I have to ask. Krakens are some of the most dangerous and troublesome monsters out there. I've never heard of one that could even tolerate humans, let alone someone having one as a pet,"

"Inky isn't a pet, none of my beasts are," Pierce corrected her with a frown. "But, as for why she's friendly towards me, I did hatch and raise her from an egg. As far as she's concerned, I'm basically her mother,"

Tyria blinked. "Ah . . . what?"

"You're gonna need to go into more detail," Kit suggested with a grin.

"Oh, alright," the Tamer wizard nodded, beginning his story.

~P's E~

It was more-or-less two and a half years ago, and Pierce and Boomer were on a job routing a group of animal smugglers. They were accompanied by an adult wizard named Russell, because, unlike Fairy Tail's Makarov, Master Feng didn't believe that preteen wizards going on jobs without adult supervision was safe. Luckily, it was usually easy enough for the boys to get someone to come with them.

The three were riding a giant origami crane created by Russell's Paper Magic, gliding on the wind above a procession of square carriages, each covered with a tarpaulin.

"Every single one of those carriages holds a captured beast. It pisses me off so much," Pierce frowned.

"Why are they covered?" Boomer questioned.

"Because this is illegal. If the poachers had the beasts in plain view, the Rune Knights would capture the poachers and release their captives," Russell explained.

"Wait, so how did the job happen if no one knew about it?" the juvenile Sound Wizard asked.

"Because they got careless," Pierce replied. "They kidnapped some aristocrat's pet winged cat and the guy sent out a request for him to be rescued. It was trying to track him down that resulted in uncovering this smuggling ring,"

"But, is it really so bad? Sure, we need to rescue the cat, but all the other animals they have down there are wild, they don't belong to anyone. What's the harm?" Boomer asked.

"Because they've got endangered species that can't survive in captivity dealing with horrible, inhumane conditions. They're going to die a slow, painful death if we don't rescue them," Pierce frowned.

"But they're _monsters_ ," Boomer pointed out. "And they aren't even tame ones like yours!"

A heavy wooden flute appeared in the Tamer's hand and smashed into his forehead. "Do you really want to pick a fight with me about a monster's right to life? Because I will go there," he growled. "Enough waiting,"

With that, he pressed his flute to his mouth, one-handed, and played a tune. With a burst of fire, the great red phoenix emerged from the portal; smaller, but still large enough to carry someone. Pierce leapt off the flying piece of origami and landed on Raya's back. "Alright, let's torch these guys!" he declared.

"You got it!" she agreed, having overheard everything from within the flute. "But first, we should light Boomer's ass on fire," she growled.

"As much as I'd like that, they're riding a giant piece of paper. Russell, at least, doesn't deserve to be sent down in smoke," her wizard replied. "Take out your anger on the poachers instead. We should start by sabotaging the wheels,"

"But I want to set them on fire,"

"Later. Let's go!" Pierce commanded, and Raya nodded, conceding the point. Flexing her wings, she swooped into a dive, streaking along directly above the dozen-strong train of carts and trailing a cloud of fire from her beak. The blaze engulfed the undercarriages of the carts, charring the wheels, each of which immediately discovered that they no longer had the strength to support their load. One by one, the carts collapsed to the ground, stopped in their tracks.

"Hey, is that a phoenix?" one of the smugglers gasped. "It looks so pretty,"

"Imagine how much we could sell it for," another mused.

"It's decided, men! Capture that phoenix!" the man in the lead cart shouted, lifting up a net. The net magically extended, and he stood up, swinging it towards Raya as she passed by.

It caught around her head and immediately pulled her out of her flight, sending her crashing to the ground in a heap. Pierce was flung clear, crashing to the ground in an heap. The net hen shrank again, tightening around her neck and sending out a wave of tentacle-like ropes, which wrapped around her body and constricting her wings against her chest. "No - no!" the phoenix gasped, choking out words through the ropes around her beak. "No, not like this!" she pleaded, starting to hyperventilate and frantically struggling against her ropes as bandits emerged from the lead carriage and encircled her.

Pierce looked up in panic, pressing his flute to his mouth and ignoring the dirt that had accumulated on it. He played, reciting from memory the tune that returned Raya to the artificial pocket of space within the flute. The phoenix vanished, ropes falling to the ground, empty.

"Where'd she go?" one of the poachers blinked dumbly.

"Damnit, Raya's down after that. I hope she's okay," Pierce gulped, but shook his head and played, on his flute, a tune with a lithe and fast beat, which seemed reminiscent of pan-pipes. A portal opened, with a new monster emerging.

Of course, 'monster' was a subjective term. If not the the pale blue colouration of her skin, the newcomer could easily have passed for human. She wore a thin black jumpsuit and wielded twin daggers that looked like they were made of black rock. "I take it ya need some help?" the mermaid grinned.

"Yep, that would be appreciated, Crystal," Pierce nodded. "Kick some butt,"

"You got it," she winked, before charging forwards and crashing into the enemy forces. "Water in the hole!"

The Beast Tamer wizard cocked his head inquisitively. "Doesn't the phrase go 'fire in the hole'?"

"Not the way I do it," Crystal grinned, throwing her daggers into the air. They span, end over end, up into the air. Involuntarily, the bandits looked up to watch them.

And while they were distracted, the mermaid generated a spinning wave of water that threw the bandits in every direction, dispatching them all in one fell swoop.

"Oh, I get it," Pierce nodded. "Okay, you keep looking for bandits. I'll start opening the cages," he declared, rushing towards the charcoaled cart and pulling away the tarpaulin.

The three heads of a chimera immediately roared at him. "Hey, calm down. I'm here to help," Pierce coaxed it, finding the door.

"So, how are you gonna break the lock?" Crystal asked while engaging a bandit that had appeared from the other side of the cart.

"Good question. But I've got an idea," he grinned in response, opening the holomagical settings window of his Requip magic with one hand and grasping the lock with the other. With a wave of his hand, the lock vanished, a small image of it appearing in the window.

The mermaid looked over in surprise. "Did you just Requip the lock?" she blinked. The bandit took advantage of her distraction to launch a surprise attack - only to find a blue fist in his face, sending him sprawling.

"Yep," Pierce grinned, opening the door. "There you go. Enjoy freedom,"

The chimera tentatively stepped towards the door, curious, and expecting some kind of reprisal. When none came and it successfully emerged into the open air, the lion head looked back at Pierce and growled a guttural "Thank you,"

"It's my duty as a Beast Tamer wizard to do everything I can to help the creatures of this world," he nodded in response.

The chimera considered this, before flicking its snake tail and tapping a box with it. "Open. Look. Help," it requested, before turning and trotting away. "Bye,"

Pierce frowned, looking at the box. It was secured by a set of ropes next to the spot where a bandit rode on the cart. He untied it and carefully pried it open.

Nestled inside, in a bed of straw, was a large, black egg. Pierce carefully scooped it up, and inspected it. "I wonder what kind of egg this is?"

"Me and those other two guys took care of all the bandits," Crystal reported, gesturing at a spot down the line where Boomer and Russell were finishing off the last of their foes.

"Great. Let's get the rest of these cages open," the wizard nodded.

"What are you doing about that?" the mermaid asked, looking at the egg.

"I'll stow it in my Requip space for now. We can figure out a way to incubate it when we get home," Pierce declared. "Now, can you help me with the cages?"

~P's E~

"A month later, it hatched into a baby kraken. And that was that," Pierce shrugged.

"Huh. I guess you can find anything if you rob the right people," Tyria mused.

"It wasn't robbing, it was rescuing," the Tamer defended himself.

"Keep telling yourself that," Kit smirked.

"Hey - where was Kit when you did that?" she asked.

"Haven't you been paying attention? I can only have one of my friends outside the flute at a time," Pierce pointed out.

"But why? It's not like you need to use magic power to sustain their presence here," Tyria asked.

"It's more of an operational restriction than a problem with magic power. The flute is only capable of summoning one beast at a time. My magic power's only used to make them stronger,"

"Well, that's dumb. So no matter how strong you get, you'll never be able to summon more than one at a time?" she frowned.

"Well, I wouldn't say that," Pierce shook his head. "I might be able to, if I could find a magic blacksmith skilled enough to upgrade it, or if I could replace it with another, stronger magical artefact, but for now," he shrugged. "It's the best I got,"

"I guess that makes sense," Tyria nodded.

"Yeah," the Tamer shrugged. "So, you picked out your first job?"

"No. I don't really know where to begin," she admitted, looking at the massive job request board against the far wall. "My TechType magic is kind of specialised,"

"Well, just pick one and give it a try," Pierce recommended. "What's the worst that could happen?"

"My first job could be a total failure," Tyria gulped.

"Would that be such a big deal? Everyone starts somewhere," Pierce shrugged, biting into a piece of chicken.

"You don't get it! If I don't nail my first job, then I can never undo that! I'll always remember my first job as being a total failure!" Tyria wailed, shaking her head in dismay.

Pierce rolled his eyes. "Jeez, drama queen much?" he snorted. "If you're so worried about that, then maybe you should find someone who's used to taking jobs and go on a job with them. You'd split the reward, but it's a good way to rack up experience,"

"Really?" she asked, her eyes wide with excitement. "You want to go on a job with me?"

"Whoa, hey, I didn't say that," Pierce protested.

"So you don't want to?" Tyria followed up, her eyes suddenly brimming with tears.

"Uh, um, I didn't say that either," he continued, before a chortling noise interrupted him. Kit was rolling on his back with laughter on the table, engulfed by hilarity.

"What's so funny?" his wizard demanded of him.

"You're in a 'no right answer' situation," the yokai giggled.

"Oh, alright. I'll go on a job with you," Pierce admitted. "But let's call it tomorrow, okay? I'm still getting the new recruit used to being with me, and I was planning to spend the afternoon with him," he decided. "Hey, why don't you come over? If we're gonna work together, you should meet my friends anyway, just in case something happens and you end up alone with one of them," the Tamer suggested.

"I guess that makes sense. Alright," Tyria agreed.

Pierce smiled. "Okay then, let's go!"

~P's E~

"This is your house? Wow, how much rent do you pay for it?" Tyria gasped, looking at the two-storey building.

"Oh, I own it," Pierce explained..

"Seriously? How could you afford to buy a place like this?" the TechType mage gasped.

"Oh, I got it at a steal. See, the place is haunted, so the landlady was happy to get anything for it. She practically gave it away. Just fifty thousand jewel and I'm the sole owner," he grinned proudly.

Tyria's mind locked onto one part of that sentence that Pierce seemed to think was unimportant. "It's haunted?!" she demanded. "Where's the ghost?"

Kit once again shifted back into view in the visible spectrum, perched on his wizard's shoulder. "You're looking at him," he winked. His bearer flinched, causing him to lose his grip and fall to the ground again. "Careful!"

"I told you not to do that!" he huffed in response. "But yeah, the so-called ghost was actually Kit, who was happy to make nice after I showed him what my magic could do," Pierce grinned, slightly darkly.

"We didn't get along all that well at first, but I guess we just got used to each other. And now we're best friends!" Kit agreed. "Well, that's a bit of a stretch," the Tamer sweat-dropped. "Anyway, come in!"

Upon entering through the brown front door, Tyria was stunned. "The entire ground floor is one empty room?" Sure enough, aside from the door, windows, and a staircase leading to the upper level in the far-right corner, the entire ground floor was completely featureless.

"Well, yeah. How else would my larger beasts fit in here? Inky sure won't fit upstairs," Pierce pointed out. He Requipped his flute. "So, shall we get started on the introductions?"

"Sure, I guess," Tyria shrugged, a little nervous. "But can we hold off on your phoenix? I think she'll probably still be a bit mad that I, y'now, tried to shoot her,"

"Alright, we'll save Raya for later," Pierce conceded. He pressed his flute to his lips, returned Kit, and played the tune to summon Inky. In a flash of black light from the portal, the kraken emerged into the large room - and seeing how much space she took up, Tyria really could appreciate that the space genuinely was needed.

The kraken extended an inquisitive tentacle towards the dark-skinned wizard. "I thought she was a bad guy?" she asked Pierce, confused.

"Not really. I was wrong," he admitted, shrugging.

"So, she's good?" Inky blinked her massive eyes.

"Yep. She's gonna be a friend of ours from now on, okay?" Pierce smiled, patting her reassuringly.

"I don't think she likes me," the baby kraken's voice wavered uncertainly, and her wizard looked over to see Tyria frantically dodging away from the advancing tentacles. "Stop that, Tyria. She just wants to play," he reprimanded her.

"I've seen her playing before, and I don't like it," she gulped.

"I think she'll just need some time to warm up to you, Inky," Pierce patted Inky reassuringly, and she nodded in understanding as he lifted the flute to his lips. "Okay. Bye now!" she waved, and vanished.

Playing a different tune, another being emerged. "Hey, I was asleep," Knox complained.

"Oh - sorry. I'm trying to introduce everyone to my new teammate. This is Tyria," Pierce explained to the hunched brown/black werewolf.

"Hi," Knox waved.

"Hi?" Tyria cluelessly waved back.

"Okay, I've met her. Can I go back to bed now?" he asked. "Fine," Pierce rolled his eyes, sending him back into the flute and playing a different melody.

Crystal emerged, the blue-skinned mermaid landing in a crouch, daggers in hand. "So, introductions, hey?" she grinned.

"Crystal, Tyria. Tyria, Crystal," Pierce introduced them.

"Can we take this upstairs? The couches are more comfortable," the mermaid requested, tucking her daggers into the sheaths at her hips.

"Sure. I was planning to show her around anyway," Pierce nodded, moving towards the stairs. "Come on!"

Crystal chuckled, following him. "Is she moving in or something? Won't that put a damper on 'us'?" she winked suggestively.

"What 'us'?" Pierce flatly responded. "Crystal's nice and all, but she's a shameless flirt," he briefly explained to Tyria.

"Aww, come now. I'm not that bad, am I?" she pouted, making every effort to be cute.

The group reached the top of the staircase, entering a living room. There were two doors, one leading into a small kitchen and the other to Pierce's bedroom. "And no, she's not moving in. You should see about renting a room down at the Nest, though," he suggested to Tyria.

"What's the Nest?" she asked in reply.

"Oh, right, you wouldn't know. The Nest is the official place where Phoenix's Eye guild members are supposed to live, though only about half of us actually live there. It's like an exclusive long-term hotel," Pierce explained. "You should definitely see about getting a room there,"

"Oh, okay," Tyria nodded. "I suppose I should," She looked at the clock lacrima on the wall. "Oh no, it's four o'clock already? Crap, if I'm gonna get a room I'd better get going!" she squealed, rushing towards the stairs. "It was nice seeing your house and your friends, Pierce! I'll see you tomorrow!" she called over her shoulder.

"But wait, you didn't even get to meet - oh, forget it, she's gone," Pierce sighed.

"She moves fast, huh?" Crystal commented, sidling over to her wizard and sitting on the couch next to him, a little too close for his liking. "So, now we're alone, hmm?"

"Go away!" Pierce commanded, playing his flute, and the mermaid vanished.

~P's E~

Tyria, having gotten directions at the guild hall, paused outside the Nest. It was a building that was in the shape of an omega symbol, encircling a large courtyard. The entire building was four storeys tall, and while several doors lined the ground floor, she knew that the double doors at the far end of the courtyard were the ones that led to the reception. The left side of the building was the girls' side, while the boys were on the right, and the fact that the right half was painted blue while the left side was pink - with the exception of one patch that, for some reason, had been crudely redone in green. Tyria looked at this spot in confusion, but shrugged it off and entered reception.

"Hello, and welcome to the Nest!" the receptionist smiled. "You're that new member, Tyria, right?" The receptionist had scruffy green hair and wore a pink blouse. "I'm Ariel. Hi!" she waved. "I take it you're going to be wanting a room?"

"Yes, that would be nice," the wizard nodded, watching as Ariel produced a form. "Alright, so your name is Tyria Zechtian, right? What kind of magic do you use?"

"It's a rather new kind called TechType," Tyria explained.

Ariel chewed on her pen thoughtfully. "I don't think I know that one. Could you demonstrate?"

"Sure. TechType: Tectonic!" she commanded, raising her right arm and letting it transform into the blue-and-silver pneumatic club.

"Oh. So it's a kind of transformation magic? And you have complete control over it?" the receptionist asked for confirmation, and as Tyria nodded, she smiled. "Good, I won't have to pencil in anything special for you,"

"Huh?" Tyria blinked.

"Oh. Some of our patrons don't have total control over their magic, or their magic is innately dangerous enough that we have to take measures to make sure nothing gets broken. A fire wizard, for example, would need their room fireproofed before they moved in. And a water wizard like myself needs to make sure that their room is immune to water damage,"

"Makes sense. You use water magic?" she nodded, interested.

"Yep!" Ariel beamed, dropping her quill and producing an old-style fountain pen. She clicked it, and a thin tendril of water emerged. "I'm not all that strong, though," she admitted. "I need the pen,"

"Well, you have nowhere to go but up," Tyria offered supportively. "You think so?" Ariel grinned. "Thanks! Okay, I think I've got the paperwork done. Rent is $80,000 a month, but it isn't due until the end of the month, so you have a couple of weeks," she explained.

"Good. Because I'm broke," the new tenant admitted sheepishly, looking over the papers. "Room 2C on the second floor of the girls' wing?" she read.

"That's the one. Enjoy!" Ariel waved with a cherry smile. Tyria returned the gesture, walking towards the stairs on the left side of the building. "I guess I should get settled in . . it's a shame I don't have many possessions. I guess that's my first mission; make enough money for rent and use anything extra I earn to buy some fun stuff," she smiled, opening the door to her room.

It was spartan in nature, with nothing but a plain bed in one corner, a small desk with a chair and a wardrobe. "Well, everyone starts somewhere. Maybe I should have spent some time looking around town to see if there was anywhere cheaper," she sighed, dropping her bag and sitting down on the bed. "All I even have is a change of clothes and a couple of trinkets from home,"

"Well, everyone's gotta start somewhere," an unfamiliar voice came from the entrance. Tyria looked towards the door inquisitively, seeing a girl with pink eyes and white hair, dressed in a black coat with a bone shirt and beige jeans. "And I think I might be able to help. Plasticmake Pictureframe!" she declared, drawing a rectangle in midair and forming a frame out of magic. She tossed it to Tyria, who caught it in surprise. "Now you just need a picture," she smiled.

"Uh, who are you?"

The girl's eyes widened. "I forgot to introduce myself again? Damnit," she shook her head in irritation. "So stupid!"

"I wouldn't say that," Tyria hastily reassured her.

"Yeah, I know. I wouldn't either, because I'm great and everyone knows that, and you'd better not forget it!" she suddenly snapped with a crazed look in her eye, before instantly reverting to her cheerful smile. "Anyway, I'm Blanca. Nice to meet you!" she grinned.

"Nice to meet you too," the TechType wizard replied, a little unnerved.

"Wonderful! Enjoy your stay here!" Blanca radiantly smiled, before her expression turned dark. "Or else," she growled, and smiled again as she called, "Bye now!", and vanished down the corridor.

Tyria blinked, unsure what to make of her strange neighbour. "Well, I guess this is my new home," She thought of the guild hall, of Master Feng and Sarah, Pierce and his beasts, Ariel and Blanca, and a smile slowly grew on her face. "I think I'm going to like it here,"

 _~P's E~_

 _"Welcome once more to Doctor Kit's Documentaries! Give a rousing cheer for your host, the yokai you all love, me!" Kit grinned. "Today we'll be talking about, uh . . ." He paused, ripping through pages. "Too irrelevant, too spoiler-y, we haven't even met_ him _yet, canon already covered that, um . . I guess we can discuss this one," he shrugged._

 _"Alright! Today I'll be telling you about how the two guilds of Magnolia, Fairy Tail and Phoenix's Eye, relate to one another!" he declared._

 _"Fairy Tail's been around for both more and less time than Phoenix Eye. It got its start with First Master Mavis, back in X684. Which means that they're actually currently celebrating their one hundred year anniversary," the yokai noted._

 _"Phoenix's Eye, on the other hand, was originally based in a different town, called Diamauros. In this way it predates Fairy Tail, as it was started more than two hundred years ago and was actually one of the first ever wizarding guilds. Unfortunately, a dark guild attacked the town in X729 and destroyed most of it, including the original guild hall. The survivors of the attack took over an old barn in Magnolia and refitted it to serve as a new guild hall. Unfortunately, it was only after they got all settled in that they realised Magnolia already had a wizarding guild, and by then it was too late to pack up and move somewhere else. In this sense, Phoenix's Eye is also younger than Fairy Tail. Luckily, Fairy Tail didn't mind the competition, and welcomed the newcomers with open arms. The two guilds immediately struck up a friendly rivalry, each constantly attempting to outdo the other. In fact, this rivalry gives both guilds motivation to constantly reach for new heights, allowing them to springboard off each other. Both Fairy Tail and Phoenix's Eye actually have each other to thank for a large amount of their reputations," Kit explained, showing a backboard that demonstrated the two guild halls seemingly (somehow) playing a game of vertical leapfrog. "Not that either will ever admit it, of course," he chuckled._

 _"Of course, that's not to say that they don't butt heads now and then. As friendly as their rivalry may be, it's still a rivalry, and one that both guilds take pretty seriously," Kit bumped into the blackboard, knocking it upside-down and revealing another screen that was titled 'Phoenix's Eye's Plans to Sabotage the X784 Harvest Festival,' "Oh, uh," Kit hastily knocked the board over, removing it from the camera's sight. "Nothing to see here, folks! That's all for now, see you next time on DK's Ds!"_

 _He frantically whispered to the cameraman; "How much of that do you think they saw?"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **Well, that definitely wasn't foreshadowing the ways that Phoenix'a Eye will interfere Laxus's plans to take over Fairy Tail. XD**

 **Apologies, but at present OC Submissions are all closed. Reason?; Overuse of tropes, flaunting the rules, and harsh, unwarranted criticism. Sorry, but I think I'm better off making my own characters. {shrugs} I guess this is what I get for going on the internet. XD**

 **Now that that's out of the way, nothing else to say, so peace!**


	4. The Track To Success

Chapter 4: The Track To Success

In the morning, Pierce, Kit and Tyria met up in the guild hall. "How about you pick?" Tyria suggested. "I wouldn't know where to begin," she admitted.

"Fair enough," Pierce nodded, walking over to the bar along the far wall. "Wait, the job board's over there!" Tyria pointed out.

"I know. But sometimes a special sort of job turns up, and I ask Sarah to snag any jobs like that and save them for me," Pierce called over his shoulder, perching on a stool at the bar. "Anything?" he asked of the barmaid.

"Sorry, nope. Maybe tomorrow?" the blue-haired bartender shook her head in reply, serving a beer to one of the guild's other members.

"Drinking, this early in the morning? Really, Larry?" Pierce frowned at the older man.

"Don't knock it till ya try it, kid," the orange-haired patron shrugged in response.

The Tamer sighed, crossing to the request board and sizing up the posters.

His gaze lingered on one, two words leaping out of the page and staring him in the face: Severed Tusk. A dark guild, and one that was far too familiar to him.

Pierce banished the uncomfortable thought, looking at the other end of the board for another job, and spotting one, which he snatched from the board. "This one looks good," he shrugged, offering it to Tyria for inspection. Kit jumped onto her shoulder to read as well. "Provide escort for a group of traders who fear they might be attacked? Both easy and ironic," she noted with a slight chuckle.

"I know, right?" Pierce chuckled in reply.

"So, taking our first job, are we?" a voice interrupted. The three wheeled in surprise to see Master Feng had appeared behind them. "It's always a pleasure to see a new guild member so eager to pitch in for the guild as a whole,"

"Uh, what do you mean? We're taking the job for ourselves," Tyria frowned.

"Maybe so, but you're taking the job as Phoenix's Eye wizards. And as long as you carry that emblem on your skin, you carry the heart and soul of the guild with you, wherever you might go. No matter what, the family you have here in this hall will always stand right behind you, supporting you in everything you do," the Fire wizard explained.

"But, what is that soul? I've heard that guilds have a creed, a motto of sorts. But I haven't seen the creed of Phoenix's Eye anywhere," the TechType wizard asked with a small frown.

Feng chuckled, shaking her head. "You want to know what our creed is?" she smiled, gazing down at the dark-skinned wizard. "Well, Pierce? Kit? On the count of three," she declared, holding up three fingers and dropping them one by one. When the third finger fell, Master and members alike declared, in perfect unison; "With the fire of our souls, we shall set the night ablaze!"

Tyria blinked. "What does that mean?"

"Pierce can explain it to you on the way to your job. Now, off with the three of you," Feng waved her hand, turning away and walking towards the stairs. "Oh, and Pierce?"

"Yes, Master?" the Tamer looked at her as she mounted the stairs.

"Please don't bring another criminal back to join the guild this time. One's all well and good, but it isn't the kind of thing that we want to be making a habit of, sweetie," she sweetly smiled, before vanishing into the doors that led to her private quarters, within the tower at the building's corner.

Pierce and Tyria spluttered in shock, and Kit was dumbfounded. "She knew?" Pierce demanded.

"And she doesn't care," the girl nodded, smiling. It felt as though a weight had been lifted from her heart, knowing that she had the full acceptance of her guild master. "Alright! Let's go!"

~P's E~

"I take it that you're the wizards from Phoenix's Eye?" their employer asked. He was waiting on the platform of the train station they had been asked to come to, sizing them up impatiently.

"Yep, that's us. The name's Pierce," the Tamer replied. Kit was off somewhere, invisible, and Tyria stood next to him.

"Well, it's about time. Come along, you two, we're late as it is," the man huffed, leading them off the platform, towards a siding on the rail network that carried a train, which had five carriages hooked up to the engine. "Now then, I've heard rumours that a notorious bandit known as the Shellshocker is inhabiting the region that we're going to be passing through. And even if we don't run into him, there's bound to be dozens of other threats. It's your job to keep them away from this shipment," the man explained.

"Shipment of what?" Tyria asked, carefully hiding a smile.

"Maximum-sweetness strawberries. It's an extremely rare and delicious kind of fruit that only blooms once every ten years. It's extremely valuable, and anyone who wants to get at it will have to go through you. Understand?" the businessman asked, gesturing to the carriage directly behind the engine.

"Right," Pierce nodded. "So, what's in the other four carriages?"

"Three of them are empty, they're only there to provide camouflage and prevent anyone from simply uncoupling the cart and making off with the strawberries by rail," the man shrugged. "The fourth is my personal quarters for the trip. No entry unless absolutely necessary," he frowned, before walking away and boarding the final carriage in the trail. "All clear?"

"I guess so," Pierce shrugged, climbing onto the first carriage of the train. Tyria followed as, with a shake, the train roared to life, rattling onto the tracks leading in the direction of Croacus. "You're here, right Kit?" the Tamer called for confirmation.

The yokai materialised on his shoulder. "Boo!" Pierce jumped, flinching away from him and causing the white-and-red fox to, as usual, lose his grip and fall to the ground, narrowly avoiding falling off the train.

"Will you please stop doing that?" the Tamer protested.

~P's E~

Two hours into the trip, and everything had been peaceful so far. "I'm bored. I'm going to do a perimeter check," Tyria decided from their position on the balcony outside the carriage.

"How? We're on a train," Pierce frowned.

"Observe," the wizard grinned, jumping off the carriage.

The Tamer watched in shock, seeing his new friend plummet towards the ground - until she brought her legs together with a blaze of magic energy. "TechType: Motorbike!" she declared, her entire lower body fusing and elongating, forming a blue and silver motorbike with thick tyres that landed easily and, turning, ran alongside the track. "Nice trick, huh?" she called with a wave, before driving away to check the area around the train.

"Sweet ride," Kit commented, sticking his head out of the wall of the carriage.

Another hour passed, and Tyria returned, reporting nothing. "This is a little boring. Are jobs always like this?" she asked, settling back down.

"It depends, really. Guard duty can be boring, but you never know when -" Suddenly, a blade attached to the end of a chain flashed in front of them, cutting the coupling and causing the four other carriages of the train to slowly drop away, no longer attached to the engine. The blade was pulled back, vanishing into the distance. "Something fun might happen," he smiled. "Kit, go check the engine. The smart thing for the bandits to do would be to hijack the engine, unless the driver's working with them. Either way, check on things," he commanded, and the yokai vanished. "Tyria, stay here. Whoever threw that sword is probably gonna show himself sooner or later, and this is the best place to combat him,"

She nodded. "What are you gonna do?"

"Go upstairs," he smiled, grabbing the ladder that led to the roof and beginning to climb it.

A minute later, Pierce stood, braced, on the roof. He carefully maintained a stance to prevent the wind from blowing him away, and scanned the horizon. There were no imminent threats incoming, that he could see. But there was a sensation, which he couldn't identify. It wasn't anything he could see or hear, or even smell, just this feeling in his skin that there was something he was missing. He turned around once more, and spotted something that didn't seem right.

The engine wasn't where it should be, the gap was wider than it had been a moment ago, and still steadily growing.

Kit appeared on the roof. "Someone cut the other coupling, too," he explained.

"But that doesn't make any sense. The other carriages are just fifty metres away, why leave us here?" Pierce frowned, trying to puzzle out the bandits' motives.

Suddenly, there was a massive thunk directly behind him. The two turned in surprise to see a massive spike, attached to a chan, had fallen out of the sky and pierced the roof of the carriage. In unison, thy looked up, to see what looked like a black boat floating in the air above them. "Is that an airship?" Pierce gasped.

The carriage shook, and began to rise, lifted into the air by the airship, and beginning to tilt as it did so. Beneath them, Tyria squeaked in surprise as her perch became unstable, and she clung to the rail as the wall she leant on fell backwards. She frowned, and carefully gripped the ladder, standing up and swinging onto its rungs.

Pierce looked over in surprise as Tyria appeared on the roof. "So, what's the plan, boss-man?" she asked.

"The best thing would be to get onto that airship, but we can't exactly climb up. And the floor's rocking too much for me to summon Raya," Pierce frowned. The anchor chain that was lifting the carriage into the air was dropping out of a hatch in the otherwise flawless hull in the ship's bottom. Even if they could climb up, there was no way onto the deck from the anchor.

"That's the problem? Jeez, you should have just said so," the wizard shook her head, placing her hands on her hips. "TechType: Jetpack!" Her back shifted to metal, unfolding into long struts, to which were attached a pair of massive blue turbines. "Grab on," she smiled, grasping his wrist. Kit frantically clung to his wizard's leg as the jetpack roared to life, blasting into the air. Pierce screamed while Tyria rocketed far away enough that there was no danger of crashing into the ship, rolling her eyes at his antics, before pivoting and going straight up, affording them a good view of the black-hulled airship with its purple gasbag above it. The gasbag was inscribed with a white motif, that was almost definitely the logo of a dark guild.

"I don't recognise that logo," Pierce admitted, getting used to the sensation of flight by his right wrist.

"Me neither. You wanna go ask?" Tyria smirked, before levelling out and blasting towards the main deck, which had about half a dozen crew members helping run the ship, one of which was on an elevated platform with a tiller.

Calling Tyria's landing just that would have been overly flattering to her flight skills. It was more of a tumbling smash in which she flung Pierce and Kit free onto the deck before carving a gash in the floor and lying on her back, dazed. The crewspeople looked at them in surprise and anger. "Legal wizards," one of them frowned as Pierce rapidly recovered and stood protectively over his teammate. He raised his flute, returning Kit with a quick tune.

"What, you want to play a little ditty for us?" one of them mocked.

"Naah. I have a better idea," Pierce grinned, playing a tune that repeated the same three descending notes, over and over. A portal appeared, and a massive cerberus emerged, barely fitting on the deck.

"Ooh, snacky humans!" the left head grinned.

"Can we eat them?" the middle one barked.

"Go wild, Brakodidon!" Pierce grinned.

Brakodidon howled in delight. "Still not sold on having a name," the right head snorted.

The left head grasped a wizard in his jaws and commented, through his food; "I like it,"

"Don't talk with your mouth full," the middle head reprimanded the left.

"I'm good," Tyria nodded, picking herself up. She looked over at where the Cerberus was terrorising the majority of the crew. "I'll check to see if anyone's below decks. You take control of this thing," she suggested, breaking for the hatch leading into the belly of the ship. "TechType: Gatling Gun!"

Pierce nodded, looking back at the cowering crew and walking towards them. "Now, if I send the giant dog away, will all of you behave?" he asked, and received a series of frantic nods. He smiled and played the tune to return Brakodidon to the inside of the flute. "Keep in mind, I can bring him back any time. So you all just stay here," he commanded, and played the melody to summon Kit back. "Kit, I need you to possess the airship and get the train back on its tracks. Can you do that?" he asked.

"You bet!" the yokai grinned, vanishing into the planks of the ship in search of the engine.

Pierce looked towards the only other member of the crew on the top of the deck, the one manning the tiller. "Oi! Are we gonna have a problem here?" he demanded.

"N-no! Not at all!" the helmsman shook his head frantically. "I'd be grovelling over there with the others, but if I don't man the tiller then the ship will fall out of the sky. I'm really sorry, please don't hurt me," he begged.

Pierce mulled this over.

"Argh!" the man suddenly screamed as Kit's head poked out of the tiller. "Well, I'm driving for now. So you can go and grovel over there with the others," he grinned, before vanishing back inside the ship. As if to prove his point, the tiller jerked independently of his actions, and Pierce chuckled, watching this. "Yes, sir!" the helmsman nodded, scrambling away from the tiller, and crossing the deck to join the others. He gave Pierce as wide a berth as possible.

The Tamer smiled darkly. "Hey, just out of curiosity, what dark guild do you belong to?"

"Plagued Vulture," one of them weakly stammered. "It's basically just us and the others below decks. We operate using this airship,"

"So, if we get rid of your airship, you're all screwed," Pierce mused. "Good to know,"

There was a thump from below them, and Kit's voice echoed through the ship. "Train's back on the tracks. Not sure what we're going to do about the destroyed couplings, though," he pointed out.

The hatch opened, and Tyria shepherded eight groggy-looking crew members out of the door, sending them to join the others. "Found this lot asleep downstairs,"

"We have another problem. The train's engine's disappeared," Kit reported.

Pierce considered this. "Kit, land. We need to drop this lot off and pick something up,"

Obediently, the yokai released the anchor from the carriage and carefully landed the airship next to the tracks. Tyria immediately left, running towards the other carriages that had been abandoned fifty metres down the line. "Everybody out!" Pierce ordered the fifteen people huddled before him.

"But -" one of the eight members who hadn't seen first-hand the horrors Pierce could unleash protested, but one of the seven who did immediately clapped his hand over his friend's mouth. "We're leaving, no trouble," he meekly nodded, and the entire guild abandoned ship, chased by Pierce's stormy glare.

Tyria returned, followed by the businessman who had hired them. "Your friend has explained the situation," he nodded to Pierce. "I assume you have a plan?"

Pierce cocked his head with a slight shrug. "Depends. Did you leave anything in that carriage back there you don't want left behind?"

~P's E~

The people who were at the train station in Hargeon that day were treated to a very unusual sight; an airship who didn't seem to have anyone flying it, painted in the colours of a dark guild, lifting a train cart by way of its anchor, swinging its cargo into the empty platform and sending it crashing into the rails, sending up a spray of sparks. The anchor was released, and the airship landed nearby.

A little later, the businessman who hired them looked at the damaged platform and cart in dismay. "Well, the strawberries all got here just fine, so I can't really fault you. But I am going to have to take the repair bill out of your pay," he frowned. "Still, the strawberries are the important part, so thank you for that," he nodded, with a smile.

"Aww, really?" Tyria blinked, disconsolate. "That doesn't happen much, right?" she asked Pierce, who just laughed. "Welcome to Phoenix's Eye, Tyria. And don't look too down. Sure, the reward took a hit, but we got something better,"

"What's that? Pride? Honour? Reputation?" the wizard asked skeptically.

Pierce grinned, looking to the grassy area outside the station. "Nope. Our very own airship!"

~P's E~

"Y'now, I just remembered. You never told me?" Tyria made conversation. The two were standing at the helm of the 'liberated' airship, and Pierce was already making plans to repaint it in Phoenix's Eye red and cover up the Plagued Vulture logo with something a little more tasteful. Like a mural of Kit's face (in the yokai's dreams).

"Told you what?" Pierce replied.

"What the guild creed means. 'With the fire of our souls, we will set the night ablaze," Tyria pointed out. "You never explained what it means,"

"Oh, that. No one's told you about how Phoenix's Eye settled in Magnolia, did they?" the Tamer queried.

"No - wait, settled? it didn't start there?" Tyria echoed in surprise.

"Nope. Phoenix's Eye was born in a town called Diamauros. A town that no longer exists, because it was wiped out by a cultish dark guild," Pierce shook his head. "The survivors regrouped and decided that, like their namesake, they would rise from the ashes and start afresh, so they moved to Magnolia, bought and renovated an old barn to serve as the new guild hall, and that was that. Of course, it was only after they settled in that they realised Magnolia already had a wizarding guild, and it was too late to move again,"

"That's good and all, but what does it have to do with the creed?" the TechType wizard asked in surprise.

"After the original guild hall in Diamauros burnt down, there was nothing left. Barely even ashes. If they'd not gone to Magnolia and just disbanded, then there wouldn't have been any evidence that Phoenix's Eye ever existed at all. So, when the guild was rebuilt, the survivors swore to leave their mark on history, to burn an indeliable seal into the face of the planet, so Phoenix's Eye would never be forgotten again. To reflect this, they changed the creed," he explained with a smile.

"Well, you aren't doing that good a job of it. I'd never heard of you until I tried to rob you," Tyria shook her head.

"Aren't we? Did you see the smile on that man's face when he knew that his strawberries were safe?" the Beast Tamer asked.

Tyria thought back. "He did seem pretty happy," she nodded.

"That's the mark we left on him," Pierce explained. "And it'll never be erased,"

 _~P's E~_

 _"Welcome to Doctor Kit's Documentaries! As usual, I, the best yokai in Magnolia -"_

 _"You're the only yokai in Magnolia!" Boomer's voice shouts from off screen._

 _"Shut up!" Kit commands. "Anyway, I am going to be your host today, discussing the best topic yet and possibly ever; myself!"_

 _A cue card is waggled off screen. Kit reads it, and sighed. "Or, 'more specifically', yokais in general," he_

 _"Yokais are a type of monster who are similar to ghosts, in that we can possess things and pass through solid objects, our bodies are usually a little bit translucent, and we don't need to eat or sleep. However, we are living beings, and as such cannot be considered ghosts, especially since we can touch things, and they can touch us. For example, in a rainstorm, the water will hit me and slide off, not pass through me," To demonstrate, a deluge of water fell from the top of the screen and soaked him. "Hey!" Kit shouted. "In short, we can pass through things, but things can't pass through us,"_

 _"In addition, yokais technically aren't spirits. We're living beings who are fully capable of reproducing. Maybe someday I'll find a cute girl yokai and settle down," Kit grinned at the thought. "Also, we can possess the lacrimas within machines, like Boomer's boombox, or the car Hare rented in Chapter 2, and use them to control the machines. We can also possess living things, like people, but only for short periods of time. Telling you more about that would constitute spoilers, so more on that another time,"_

 _Kit grinned, pointing to a board showing the outline of a crown with a question mark in it. "There's also legends of a Yokai King, who I normally wouldn't mention but Pierce already let that slip, so not much point. I've never seen him, so I don't know what he looks like, or what he can do. It I would imagine that he's something like this,"_

 _Kit jumped off screen for a second, and when he returned, he was wearing a crown and a red cape. "Hear me, hear me! I am king of all yokais! Bow down before me! And invent a way for yokais to eat! I want to taste chicken!" He ditched the costume. "That's all for now. See you next time, on DK's Ds!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **Two character submissions already. Great. ^^ Though characters submitted don't need to have deep, depressing backstories. All I really need is name, appearance, personality and magic type used.**

 **So, yeah. Peace!**


	5. Best Frenemies Forever

Chapter 5: Best Frenemies Forever

A fortnight passed, and Pierce and Tyria took on more jobs, some togeber, some with others, and the occasional one alone. But, whenever possible, they would make a habit of meeting up and sharing lunch.

"Seems like you're settling in well," Pierce observed, watching Tyria eagerly tuck into one of Sarah's sausage sandwich specials, or Quad-S Meatlover's -s, as they were officially called at the bar.

"Yeah, this place is great," the dark-skinned wizard grinned through a mouthful of meat. "Where's Kit?"

"He decided that he just couldn't stand watching us eat anymore, and he's had enough with us 'mocking him'," the Tamer helplessly shrugged.

"Right," Tyria sweat-dropped.

"Hey, did you guys hear the news?" Boomer asked, taking a seat next to them.

"How about you tell us what that news is, and we'll tell you if we've heard or not?" Pierce logically suggested.

"Oh yeah, good idea," Boomer nodded, scratching his head awkwardly. "Some bastard smashed up Fairy Tail's guild hall. The place is a mess, metal pillars all over it. It's a wonder the place didn't come crashing down,"

"What?" Tyria gasped.

"So, someone wants to pick a fight with the fairies? Bad move," Pierce shook his head.

"Why?" Tyria asked.

"Because Phoenix Eye owes Fairy Tail a debt. Sure, we're rivals in every sense of the word, and we all act like we hate each other's guts. But when it comes down to the grind, we've got each other's backs through thick and thin," Pierce informed her. "Anyone who picks a fight with Fairy Tail had better be ready to take on two guilds,"

"But what guild would be crazy enough to take on Fairy Tail, knowing that?" Tyria wondered.

"According to the papers, Phantom Lord," a familiar voice interrupted them. Hare plonked herself down in the seat next to Boomer, causing all three other wizards to jump involuntarily.

"The journalists have identified that the most likely source of this destruction is a man named Black Steel Gajeel. He's an S-Class wizard in the Phantom Lord guild," Hare explained.

Tyria knew all about S-Class. She had noticed that there was a second floor to the building that bore a second job request board, and upon asking after it, Pierce had explained the concept of S-Class jobs and wizards qualified to take them. Anyone was allowed up there, but without that badge of approval from Master Feng, you couldn't touch that board. Unless an S-Class wizard asked you to come along on one of those jobs, which did happen from time to time. Pierce could recall a couple of such occasions.

"What do you want?" Boomer warily questioned.

"Nothing to do with you three losers, that's for sure," the kimono-clad woman snorted. "But if Phantom Lord's coming after Fairy Tail, then you can bet they have some kind of plan to deal with Phoenix's Eye, too. And, as much as I hate to admit it, my best bet for survival is probably with you lot,"

"Woo-hoo," Pierce sarcastically pumped a fist.

"Something's been different about you recently," Hare mused, before suddenly appearing centimetres from Pierce's face. "You aren't as afraid of me as you used to be," she hissed.

"Well, it's just, after seeing T-the Shellshocker knock you out with one hit, it's a little hard to take you seriously anymore," Pierce reasoned.

"I can still kick your ass twelve ways to Sunday," Hare hissed.

"And that means I should be afraid of you? Pssh. You know, come to think of it, I actually can't remember a single time where you've beaten me or Boomer without first stealing our flute or boombox with your superspeed," Pierce mused.

"She's still scary, man!" Boomer hissed.

Hare blinked, stunned by his defiance, before leaning back and snorting; "Whatever,"

A familiar voice echoed across the hall. "Everyone! Pay attention!" Master Feng bellowed from the second-floor balcony. The entire guild quietened down and looked up to her vantage point. "I'm sure you all know that Fairy Tail has been attacked! By Phantom Lord, no less!"

"Yeah, we heard," someone called.

"It is our duty as members of Phoenix's Eye to lend Fairy Tail any and all support it needs! However, it appears that Fairy Tail does not intend to return fire at present, but that does not mean that Phantom Lord is finished. I would be very surprised if this is the extent of their scheme, and if they plan to take on Fairy Tail, they will also have a plan in place to deal with us! Ergo, we are now in a state of red alert! This means that no guild member is to go anywhere alone, they must always be in a group of three of more! Do I make myself clear?!" she demanded. The entire guild replied with various affirmations.

"I have also worked with Makarov to develop a system of safe refuge points, crafted so that any wizard in Phoenix's Eye can, if they feel threatened, make it to one of numerous safe locations throughout Magnolia within two minutes of running," Feng explained, throwing a lacrima into the air. It froze in midair and hovered there, before projecting a vertical map of Magnolia. Feng raised her arms and tendrils of fire burst out, highlighting key places in the city. Places of interest included both the Phoenix's Eye and Fairy Tail guild halls, Fairy Hills and the Nest, as well as other locations including Pierce's house, Kardia Cathedral, the hospital, South Gate Park, and for some reason, a completely random cake shop. "Master, what's up with the cake shop?" a red-haired boy wearing a heavy-looking iron helmet asked in curiosity.

Feng sighed. "Apparently one of the members of Fairy Tail is so obsessed with cake that she swore to defend the shop with her life. I was skeptical, but Makarov thinks she's serious about it, so it made the list," she helplessly shrugged.

"Erza Scarlet?" another wizard snorted, folding his arms.

"Ezra Scarlet," Feng confirmed with an exasperated nod. "Know this map well, it might just save your life," she commanded. "Or at least save me several medical bills," the master quietly moaned to herself. "Now, if we're done here, go in peace, and take care," she commanded. The lacrima map and its fiery focal points remained, as she vanished back into the tower.

"So, even the master thinks we might be in trouble," Hare noted.

"That's bad," Boomer gulped, nervously tapping his boombox.

Unconsciously, Pierce Requipped his flute, and Tyria shifted a little bit closer to him. "Maybe Crystal was right, and I should have bought that sword," he mused.

"Pssh. You'd never know how to use it," the Speed wizard sitting opposite him snorted.

"Oh, I would have been happy to give him a few classes!" a loud, booming voice echoed through the table, and the biggest man that Tyria had ever seen sat down at the end of their table.

"Hi, Sarph," Pierce absent-mindlessly nodded.

Sarph, with pale skin and well-defined muscles, towered over the other wizards at the table. He was bald, and yellow eyes glinted in the light. He smiled, baring white teeth, and wore a vest of golden chain mail, with brown trousers. A large sword was slung over his back. "Hi," Tyria weakly waved.

"Oh, this is Sarph. He's an S-Class wizard," Pierce dismissively introduced the man. "And a damn good swordsman at that," Sarph jovially grinned.

Tyria blinked five times, processing this. "Don't just say that like it's no big deal!" she finally snapped.

"Oh, it isn't, really. So I completed a special trial that puts me on a higher level within the guild. So I'm more powerful. It doesn't make me any better than the rest of you," Sarph smiled broadly, before a dark look crossed his face. "Something that some people would do well to remember," he snorted, casting a dark look towards the second floor. But then his smile returned, and so did his gaze towards the other four wizards. "But let's not cry over dried stains of milk. Now, I was actually coming over here to talk to you, Pierce," he nodded to the Tamer. "A mission has turned up on the S-Class board that I think you might be interested in,"

There was no clear change in Pierce's expression. But a trained eye would notice the way that his jaw and neck tightened.

"Now, obviously we can't afford to leave during a crisis such as this. But as soon as this Phantom Lord nonsense is over, we should definitely attend to that business," Sarph nodded.

Pierce nodded to himself, resolve tightening his muscles. "Is it Severed Tusk again?" he asked, gripping his flute.

"No, but it might as well be. It's a facility run by a dark guild under the Oracion Och, which, if my intel is correct, is trying to create a new kind of monster," Sarph shook his head in disapproval. "I don't know what perversions of nature they have in that facility, but I know that if anyone can be trusted to make sure that they go to a good home, it will be you. So I want you along with me for that one,"

"Create a new kind of monster? Is that even possible?" Boomer echoed in horror.

"Nothing's impossible when dark guilds are in the picture," Pierce frowned, clutching his flute. "I need some time to think. I'll see you all later," he declared, walking towards the entrance.

"Wait! We aren't supposed to go anywhere by ourselves!" Tyria protested.

"I'm not by myself," Pierce replied over his shoulder, brandishing his flute in full view. "See you later,"

~P's E~

The Tamer was a little surprised to, when he came home, find a group of Fairy Tail and Phoenix's Eye wizards having a brawl outside him and Lucy's houses. A red-haired girl who he recognised as Fairy Tail's Erza Scarlet regarded the group irritably.

Pierce frowned, raised his flute and pressed fingers down on every hole but one, before blowing as hard as he could. The resulting shill noise, while not summoning any monsters, was ear-splitting enough to interrupt the fight. "What the hell is going on?" he demanded.

"These Fairy Tail wizards were squatting outside your house!" Boomer shouted.

"We weren't squatting! Lucy kicked us out!" a pink-haired teenager wearing a white scarf and a black vest raged in response.

"And whose fault was that, flame-brain?" a half-naked boy with black hair and the Fairy Tail logo on his chest snorted.

"It was obviously yours, you icy prick!" Flame-brain roared.

"Somebody help me!" Tyria wailed from the middle of the fight.

"I'll take you fairies on any time," Hare coolly smiled.

"You think so? Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" the pink-haired fairy roared, throwing a flaming fist towards Hare, who suddenly flickered out of the way.

"Natsu! Gray! Enough!" Erza snapped, a sword Requipping into her hand. Both wizards paled and squeaked; "Yes ma'am!"

Unfortunately, this gave Hare, who never knew when to quit, the opportunity to plant a stunning blow to Natsu's face. She smirked - right up until Natsu unleashed a massive flaming road in her general direction. "TechType: Force Field!" Tyria squeaked, and Boomer dashed to hide behind her.

Hare was blown backwards, her kimono singed and tattered. "Little punk," she growled. "That's it! Speed Stri - huh?"

All five combatants suddenly found themselves lifted into the air by rubbery black tentacles. "Good job, Inky," Pierce smiled, patting the baby kraken. "Yay! I win - ouch!" the baby squeaked, as Natsu, predictably, tried to hit her. "Stop it! I don't like it!" she moaned, sending her other three tentacles to further incapacitate the Dragon Slayer.

"Is that a tame kraken?" Erza asked, her eyes glittering with excitement.

"Yeah, this is Inky," Pierce waved, protectively stepping between the S-Class wizard and his friend.

"Very impressive. I would greatly enjoy testing my skills against this Inky," the knight smiled.

"I don't wanna," the kraken gulped, and Pierce shook her head. "She's only a baby. No way I'm letting something like that happen,"

"As you wish. How long will it be until she is an adult?" Erza directly asked.

"Uh, seven and a half years?" Pierce shrugged. "Now, if we let you all down, will you stop fighting?"

Most of the captured wizards nodded their assent. Natsu, on the other hand, roared "Never! You're going down, phoenixes!" A tentacle promptly wrapped itself around his mouth and prevented him from talking.

"Natsu!" A familiar blonde girl burst out of the house that they were standing outside, and looked around at the situation. "Why does this not surprise me?" she sighed.

"Hey, Lucy! Hi!" Pierce waved.

"Hey, Pierce," Lucy friendlily replied. "I take it that Natsu's being a pain as usual?" she folded her arms expectantly.

"That's Natsu for you," commented a blue cat with wings and a green backpack, emerging behind Lucy. "How did you get back into my house?" the Celestial Wizard demanded upon noticing him.

"Now then," Erza glowered at the other wizards. "Anyone who doesn't behave when they're put down will answer to me," she declared. "Pierce?"

"Bye-bye!" Inky waved, unintentionally shaking Gray in midair, as Pierce played the tune to return her to the subspace within his flute.

"You know, I always thought that krakens were aquatic beings," Gray commented, picking himself up.

"Actually, they're amphibians. While they prefer water, they can survive on land. There's actually a species of pygmy kraken that -" Pierce started, but was interrupted by Natsu's declaration of "Boring! How about we fight it instead?"

"Natsu?" Erza glowered, and the Dragon Slayer immediately cowered under her glare. "You weren't planning to hurt that sweet, innocent baby squid, now were you?" she demanded. "No ma'am!"

"Well, now that that's settled," Pierce took point as the Phoenix's Eye wizards regrouped. "Lemme guess, Lucy. Your house is also on the safe zone list," he deadpanned.

"Yup, that's right," the blonde nodded.

"Isn't having two refuge points right next to each other a little redundant?" Tyria pointed out.

"So, why were you all fighting, anyway?" the Tamer asked his Sound Wizard friend.

"Someone thought we were encroaching on Lucy's house, when we were actually just waiting for you to get back so you could let us in to your place," Boomer explained, with a pointed look towards Natsu, who fumed but said nothing.

"I'd better let this lot in. Can you handle your guild mates?" Lucy asked, and Pierce nodded. "We'll be fine. My magic revolves entirely around keeping people calm and telling them what to do. I have a little experience," he grinned, leading the Phoenix's Eye wizards towards his own house. "See you later!"

"See ya!" Lucy waved as they both entered their own houses, leading their friends. As they did, Pierce, realising that he missed his companion, played the tune to summon Kit, and the yokai emerged.

"You're awfully friendly with that fairy girl," Hare frowned.

"She's my neighbour," the Tamer defended himself with folded arms.

"I thought Fairy Tail and Phoenix's Eye were friends," Tyria frowned.

"Oh, it's more like 'frenemies'. Sure, in times of crisis, we come together. But that doesn't mean we're all buddies," the green-clad woman snorted.

"She's just mad because her crush is in another guild," Kit giggled. He promptly danced away from Hare's boot before it could flatten him.

"Her crush?" Tyria chuckled. Hare's stormy glare warned her that this was a bad idea, but Kit was already responding - and, as a yokai, he was immune to anything Hare could hit him with. "Freed Justine. Tall, green hair, absolute gentleman. Fairy Tail Wizard," he smirked.

"Why, you blasted - abhorrent - dead meat!" Each insult was punctuated by another failed attempt to squash Kit into ectoplasm. Pierce played a quick tune to return Kit before the fox could get himself into any more trouble, and Hare breathed heavily, still fuming with anger.

"How about we go upstairs and I start making dinner?" Tyria offered, in an attempt to make peace.

"I could eat," Boomer agreed, eagerly patting his stomach.

~P's E~

"Damn, why didn't you tell me you could cook, Tyria?" Pierce moaned in satisfaction.

"You never asked. Plus, I spent a lot of time cooking for myself before I joined, so, yeah," Tyria shrugged.

"I never thought I'd see the day when one of you brats would be good for something," Hare contentedly nodded, "But this takes the cake,"

Tyria blinked. "Cake . . oh, that reminds me!" she gasped, dashing back into the kitchen. Where she stopped, and looked at the place on the bench where the cake had been half an hour ago. "That's weird. Where did the cake go?"

Next door, Erza was frantically shovelling frosty goodness into her mouth. "So, where'd you get the cake?" Happy asked. "If I give you a piece, will you forget that you asked that question?" the S-Class wizard offered. "Aye, sir!"

Back in Pierce's house, Tyria returned to the living room empty-handed. "Sorry, guys, but someone stole the cake," she reluctantly admitted. "Which is weird, because there's only one door and no windows in the kitchen, and no one could have gotten in without us seeing them," the wizard frowned.

"There's a skylight, and Erza Scarlet is next door. Enough said," the Tamer pointed out. "That girl has a problem," Kit agreed.

"Eh. I'm trying to cut down on sugar anyway. People are whispering that I'm starting to get a little tubby," Boomer shook his head.

The rest of the room's occupants all slowly turned their gaze towards the Sound wizard's unnecessarily wide body and pudgy limbs and sweatdropped. "You're joking, right?" Kit finally deadpanned.

"I know. I can't see it, but I guess Russell must know what he's talking about," Boomer shamelessly shrugged. Pierce facepalmed, and Hare laughed.

Soon enough, it was time to settle down. Boomer took the floor next to Pierce's bed, leaving Tyria and Hare on the couches. "Goodnight, Hare," the dark-skinned wizard sleepily nodded.

"Shut up, little brat," her temporary roommate sleepily responded.

"Goodnight to me too," Tyria chuckled, nestling down in the covers.

~P's E~

Pierce was woken by screams of outrage coming from the window. "What in the world?" he blearily blinked, seeing the red sunrise light coming through the cracks in the curtains. There was a tumultuous uproar coming from down the road. "Hey, Boomer. Wake up. Something's going down in South Gate Park," Pierce climbed out of bed and nudged Boomer awake.

The shockwave of sound resulting from startling the Sound wizard bodily lifted Pierce into the air, and upset the contents of his bookshelves. He fell back onto the bed, as Boomer blearily woke up. "Pierce?" he blinked, sitting up and spotting the Tamer lying, slumped, on his bed. He registered the noise coming from outside. "Pierce, wake up. There's something happening outside. It sounds like it's coming from South Gate Park,"

Pierce opened his eyes and glared at him. "Oh really? Then I suppose we had better wake the girls and go investigate,"

"Well, we should probably get dressed out of our pyjamas too, but yeah," Boomer agreed.

~P's E~

The four Phoenix's Eye wizards ran towards the tree, where a crowd that looked as though half of Magnolia was gathered around the great tree was gathered . . well, around said great tree. "What the hell is going on?" Pierce demanded, attempting to push through the crowd with little success.

"Someone crucified a trio of Fairy Tail wizards against the tree," the crowd whispered.

"Shove over," Hare demanded, pushing through the crowd with much greater success - until the Fairy Tail wizards that had been staying in Lucy's house shoved past her, leaving Hare fuming. Pierce and Tyria had the presence of mind to follow the swathe they cut through the crowd, taking advantage of the opportunity to get to the front.

And, upon reaching the centre of the crowd, they saw something horrifying. Three Fairy Tail wizards - who, admittedly, Pierce didn't recognise, but that was beside the point - were hung on the tree by metal studs that were driven through their hands and feet. "That's horrible," Tyria gasped.

The crowd's attention turned to the side, and the two wizards followed suit, where they saw the Fairy Tail guild master, Makarov, with a dark look on his face. "They can destroy our house. They can spit in the face of our guild. But no parent," he glowered, "can stand by while their children's blood runs!"

The Master's body swelled, until he towered over the crowd. "This means war!" he roared. Every member of Fairy Tail in the crowd shotued in agreement, as Pierce joined in. After a second, Tyria followed suit, and behind them, they heard Boomer joining in with the full might of his handheld sound system.

"Phantom Lord's in trouble, aren't they?" Tyria said with a small smile.

Pierce grinned. "You bet,"

 _~P's E~_

 _"Welcome back to DK's Ds!" Kit grinned._

 _"Okay, what can we discuss that's relevant to today's chapter? Maybe the lecture from Chapter 3 would have been more appropriate," he mused. "Okay, um," He frantically shifted through papers, before finding something appropriate. "Here we are; S-Class Wizards in Phoenix's Eye!"_

 _"S-Class is a coveted title, borne only by the most powerful wizards in the guild. This includes Sarph," the yokai shows a crude picture of the gold-clad man, "and others who we haven't seen yet, such as the Power Twins, Bleeding-Vein Artorias, Garrotte, and," Kit shuddered. "Her,"_

 _"But let's not dwell on things that give me nightmares," the fox declared. "Much like in Fairy Tail, S-Class wizards are selected by way of taking, and winning, a trial. Unfortunately, unlike Fairy Tail's Tenrou Island, Phoenix's Eye doesn't have its very own island to call sacred ground. So we hold the trials in different places all the time. It's mostly just a matter of whatever dump's naive enough to let us smash things up there for a week or two," he chuckled. "Previous locations include deserted islands, remote mountains, active volcanoes, and I near Master's been looking into renting out the moon!"_

 _"I don't think there's anything else I can explain without getting way too specific, so, until next time!" Kit waved._

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **And this chapter marks the debut appearances of my first two submitted characters! Both of which made very minor and forgettable appearances, but they will return!**

 **Also, Sarph is not to be a major recurring character. He's an important character but about on the same level of recurring-ness as Levy. If Levy were S-Class and as strong as Erza. XD**

 **Anyway, still accepting OCs, and peace!**


	6. The Burning-Hot Cold War

Chapter 6: The Burning-Hot Cold War

"I'm not going to ask you and your guild to come and fight our battles," Makarov shook his head. He and Feng were having a private meeting in regards to Phoenix Eye's actions against Phantom Lord.

Feng nodded. "I understand. It's a matter of pride for you and your little brats. After all, I suppose it wouldn't look very good if two guilds ganged up on Phantom Lord. It would look like Fairy Tail needs help from us phoenixes,"

"Exactly. And you know that I won't allow that unless it is absolutely necessary," Makarov nodded.

"We'll wait," Feng agreed. "But just say the word, and we'll come on wings of fire,"

"I know, and I both look forward to seeing that," Makarov briefly smiled, before frowning once more. "And hope it is unnecessary. So, until we must unite once more?" he offered, moving to leave.

"Until then," Feng agreed.

Makarov paused by the exit to Feng's parlour, the contents of the second floor of her personal tower, and offered some parting words. "Of course, if Phantom Lord were to expect you to back us up and launch a preemptive strike against you, then you would be justified in any retaliation," he suggested.

Feng chuckled. "I'll keep that in mind, Maky,"

The Fairy Tail guild master exited, and, once Feng was certain he had left, she exited her chambers, taking up her position on the second floor. The entire guild - as much of it as could be assembled at such short notice, at least - was amassed in the main area of the guild hall. "We are not taking any action against Phantom Lord! Not yet, anyway," she began.

The entire guild erupted in surprise. Feng sighed. "Pierce?" she cupped her hands and shouted in the direction of the table where she knew the Tamer was sitting.

Pierce, hearing her cry and knowing what she wanted him to do, raised his flute. "Cover your ears," he warned Tyria, who nodded and pressed er hands to her ears, before he held up his flute to Boomer, covering every hole but one. "You know what the Master wants us to do," he smiled, and the Sound wizard grinned. "I love doing this," With a quick spell, he focused a column of vibrating air through the flute's mouth.

There was an ear-splitting screech that drowned out all other noise. The guild quietened down, and Feng gave the signal for Boomer to stop. "If everyone's done?" she demanded with a shout. "Good. As a matter of Fairy Tail's pride as a guild, we won't interfere for fear of making them look weak. That is to say, we won't interfere unless Phantom Lord gives us a reason to," she slyly smiled. "So, do all of you know what that means?"

The guild was silent. Most of them already knew, but they wanted to hear the master say it.

"It mean you all should get out there and piss off those Phantom bastards as much as you can! Give them a reason to pick a fight with us! I want you all to push the rules against inter-guild wars to their very limits! Abuse every flaw in the rules, exploit every loophole! We'll set the sky above them on fire, before bringing it crashing down on their heads! Who's with me?" she demanded.

"We aren't!" A voice shouted from one corner. As one, the entire guild turned to look at this defiance. A man with white hair, clad in a black robe, and a woman with black hair, wearing a matching robe in the opposite colour of white. Their eyes were red and green respectively, and just by looking at their faces, the shared triangular jawline, the same angular slant to their eyebrows, it was obvious that they were related. It was the woman who had spoken, her brother towering over her with folded arms and an impassive expression.

"Figures they'd cause trouble," Russell snorted from his place near the bar. "They always do," one of his drinking buddies agreed.

"Who are they?" Tyria asked, confused.

"That's Jashie and Eishaj. They're twins, and both S-Class Wizards," Pierce explained. "No one's ever seen one of them separate from the other. They're both powerful in their own right, but together, they're unstoppable," he frowned, before his easygoing smile returned. "At least, that's the rumour. I've never actually seen them fight, so I don't really know," he admitted.

"I see," Tyria nodded.

"Why should we bother? Phantom Lord's beef is with Fairy Tail, not us," Jashie pointed out. "Why do we still feel like we owe Fairy Tail anything, anyway? You keep going on and on about how we as a guild owe Fairy Tail a lot - for what? Not getting in our way when we resettled in Magnolia? Fifty years ago? Why do we still owe them anything?" she snorted, folding her arms.

"This is not about that." Feng frowned. "I am not guiding our moves towards helping Fairy Tail because I feel that we still owe them a debt for their assistance fifty years ago. I do it out of the goodness of my heart, and of all of our hearts, because even now, Fairy Tail is in trouble, and it is our duty as their neighbours to provide any assistance we can offer. Because I know, and we all know, in our hearts, that Fairy Tail would do the same for us if our roles were reversed," the Master declared.

"Whatever. Do whatever you want with those fairy freaks, but leave us out of it," Jashie huffed. "We're leaving, right brother?" she shook her head, rising.

Her twin nodded and followed her, and both calmly left the guild building.

Feng shook her head in disapproval. "Anyone else?" she asked pointedly, with no reply. "Good! Now, let the cold war on Phantom Lord commence!"

~P's E~

"What exactly is Master's plan?" Tyria asked. "We can't outright attack Phantom Lord, and we don't know where their members are gonna be," she reasoned.

"I think Master probably means it as an opportunistic thing. If we get the chance to put Phantom's tail in a twist, we take it," Pierce reasoned.

"Yeah, makes sense," she admitted. "So, should we find another job?"

Pierce shook his head. "You can if you want, but I'm sticking around until the crisis is over and Sarph can take me on that S-Class job," he replied.

Tyria nodded. "I'll stay with you too, then. Besides, if Phantom Lord launches an attack on us, it'll be here, in Magnolia, and someone needs to be around to defend the guild hall. I guess," she gulped.

"Don't worry, there'll be plenty of people around to defend the guild hall. Sarph is waiting around too, and I hear Garrotte is due back any day now. And the non-S-Class wizards can still pack a punch," Pierce nodded.

"Who's Garrotte? I've heard his name mentioned a few times, but no one seems to want to talk about him," the wizard took the opportunity to ask.

"Well, there's really no way to describe him. I guess you'll just have to wait and see," the Tamer grinned. "You're enjoying this way too much," Tyria pouted.

~P's E~

But in spite of Phoenix's Eye as a whole's best efforts, Phantom Lord didn't respond, and the remainder of the day and night were spent peacefully. Once again, Tyria, Boomer and Hare spent the night at Pierce's, with a far more peaceful awakening than the day before.

"I'm not in the mood to cook again. Let's go to a cafe for breakfast," Tyria blearily requested upon waking up.

So it was that the nine-o'clock morning sunlight found the four Phoenix's Eye wizards seated around a table on a hill that gave them a great view of northern Magnolia, spread out like a living map. They could see all the way to the Fairy Tail guild hall - or what was left of it, anyway - and the ocean beyond.

"I love the food in Fiore. So much better than the stuff they had back in Alvarez," Tyria admitted, biting into a piece of bacon.

"Oh yeah, you're an immigrant, aren't you?" Hare noted. "If you insult my heritage," the TechType wizard growled, but Hare held up her hands defensively. "Hey, chill. I'm a heartless bitch and proud, but even I wouldn't stoop to racism,"

"Good," Tyria huffed.

"Congratulations. You discovered the one insult even Hare wouldn't use," Pierce chuckled. Hare ignored him, instead asking; "Hey, where's your ghost fox?"

"Off sulking. He doesn't like watching us eat," the Tamer briefly explained.

The group finished their meal with some more idle chit-chat, until Boomer looked down towards the ocean and commented, "Hey. Looks like Fairy Tail already bought a new guild hall. Do they make made-to-order self-delivering guild halls now?" he frowned.

"Pardon?" the other three demanded.

"Look down there. There's a giant castle on legs moving towards the wreckage of the Fairy Tail guild hall. They must have bought a new hall, and now it's being delivered. That's pretty cool," Boomer explained.

Pierce and Tyria were dumbfounded. "You idiot!" Hare rolled her eyes. "That's the Phantom Lord headquarters! There's no such thing as a 'made-to-order guild hall'!" she exploded.

"Oh jeez. I'd heard that the Phantom Lord headquarters was mobile and weaponised, but I never really believed the rumours," Pierce gulped. "The fairies are gonna need our help,"

"Like hell! It's their fight," Hare snorted.

"A fight that the guild master wants us to help them with," Tyria pointed out, rising from her chair. "We need to go help them,"

"No. Well, yes, but first, we need to go to the guild hall and tell everyone what's happening," Pierce reasoned. "Hare, you're fastest, that's your job,"

"Nope. Not happening. You heard the master, we can't help the fairies or they'll look bad,"

"If the rumours about Phantom Lord's base being mobile are true, then so are the ones about their weapon systems. Based on what I've heard, they have a Jupiter Cannon in there! That's enough to blow up half of Magnolia! And tell me, Hare, if Phantom Lord obliterates Fairy Tail, then what's to stop them from deciding to take another rival guild out of the picture while they're at it?"

"Forget it. I'll go tell them. You help Fairy Tail," Tyria waved, pressing her legs together. "TechType: Motorbike!" The cycle appeared and Tyria sped off, streaking down the street.

"It'll be at least twenty minutes for her to get to the guild hall, rally everyone and get them across town to Fairy Tail," Pierce shook his head. "Can you really condemn everyone in Fairy Tail to death?" he frowned at Hare, before Requipping his flute. "Because I can't," he shook his head, playing the tune to summon Raya. The phoenix emerged, knocking over a couple of tables in the process. "You heard everything?" the Tamer asked, and Raya nodded, as he mounted her back. "To Fairy Tail!" With that, she took off, gaining altitude.

Boomer and Hare looked at each other. "Fine," the speed wizard growled, standing and grabbing Boomer's wrist. "Hold on tight," she recommended, and vanished in a blur.

~P's E~

"Holy crap," Pierce breathed from overhead. "That really is a Magical Convergence Cannon: Jupiter,"

"I've never actually seen one," Raya agreed. "And it's preparing to fire," Pierce gulped.

"We're still too far away, we won't be able to - is that girl trying to block it?" the phoenix gasped. Sure enough, a tiny figure was floating in the air, carrying a massive shield and preparing to block the blast. "That's impossible,"

The Tamer recognised the shock of red hair. "That's Erza Scarlet. If anyone could block Jupiter, she can," he agreed.

Raya beat her wings faster, hoping to get there in time - but no. The cannon fired, and Erza took the full brunt of the blow, held in mid-air by the sheer force of the weapon. Even as the bird desperately advanced towards her, the onslaught of energy ceased, and Fairy Tail's S-Class wizard began to fall to the ground, her armour shattered to pieces. "Almost there," Raya hissed.

Fairy Tail watched in shock as Erza, having just blocked a point-blank blast from a Jupiter cannon, fell out of the sky, until a red streak shot out of nowhere and caught her.

Raya, clutching Erza's limp body in her claws, gently deposited her on the ground outside Fairy Tail, where most of its members were gathered. A couple immediately dashed forwards to check on Erza, as Pierce dismounted.

A white-haired lady who Pierce recognised as Mirajane Strauss - if for no other reason than her frequent appearances in Sorcerer Weekly - crouched over Erza, checking her pulse. "She's alive! Just unconscious!" Mira reassured her guildmates. She smiled warmly at Pierce. "You're from Phoenix's Eye, right? Thank you. She might not have survived the fall,"

"That would be a shame, huh?" he chuckled in reply. "Me and my friends were nearby. They went to get the rest of my guild,"

"The support will be welcome," Mira nodded, carefully lifting Erza and taking her back towards the guild.

"Hey! Who are you and what do you want?" a familiar pink-haired boy shouted at Pierce, who sweatdropped. "I'm Pierce. Remember, Natsu? We met? Yesterday?"

Natsu cocked his head and squinted. "Nope," he shrugged, clueless.

"That's Natsu for you. All he thinks about is eating, sleeping, and fighting," Happy sighed nearby.

A voice who Pierce, after a second, identified as Jose, guild master of Phantom Lord, broadcast from the castle that loomed over Fairy Tail. "Congratulations," it sarcastically began. "You blocked one blast from Jupiter. But, I wonder, can you block another? It will take fifteen minutes for Jupiter to recharge and fire again. You have that long to surrender Lucy Heartfilia to my custody,"

"Never!" a guild member - Gray, was it? - shouted.

"Yeah, Lucy's one of us!" Kana agreed.

"A real man would never hand her over to you!" a white-haired man with dark skin like Tyria's bellowed in agreement.

One by one, every member of Fairy Tail voiced their consent. Watching this, Pierce shrugged. "I'm with them! We're keeping Lucy!" he agreed, and Raya screeched with him, before he paused. "Wait. Lucy?" he blinked, squinting at the centre of the mob, and spotting his neighbour in the middle, starting to cry with joy.

"Very well," Jose snorted through the Phantom Lord loudspeakers. "I give you two options, then. Survive long enough to be blown away by Jupiter, or be overrun by my Shade," he snorted. Holes began to open up in the sides of the castle, and a swarm of black creatures poured out, hundreds of hooded black ghosts swarming towards Fairy Tail. Pierce turned white. "Uh-oh,"

Behind him, after a small conversation with a couple of the guild's other members, the blue cat with wings picked up Natsu and flew him up to the castle, where they entered through the barrel of the Jupiter cannon. Pierce watched this in surprise, and shook his head. "That guy is something else,"

"You think we should go help him?" Raya suggested as they fell back and joined up with the Fairy Tail wizards.

"Who, Natsu? Don't bother, you'll just get caught in the crossfire. He's a Dragon Slayer, he can handle whatever guards they have around that Jupiter thing's internal workings," Gray advised as he blasted a shade with a beam of ice magic.

Pierce nodded, until he remembered something that he had read when Sorcerer Weekly did an article on Dragon Slayer magic. "Wait, don't Dragon Slayers get motion-sick when they're on vehicles? Even giant ones like that one?" he pointed out, gesturing at the great, six-legged contraption.

As one, every member of Fairy Tail froze and turned white. "Oh no," Mirajane moaned.

"We're screwed," Gray agreed.

"What were we thinking, sending Natsu? Of all people?" lamented a grown man who was using a strange purple fire to fight.

"So, we should go help him," Raya surmised.

"Just go," Fairy Tail chorused. "You're the only one here who can fly, anyway," Mira shrugged.

"You heard them," Pierce smiled, climbing onto Raya's back.

"Let's go kick Phantom ass," the firebird agreed, clearing a path through the swarm with a torrent of flame, before taking off, flinging herself into the air. At precisely the right second, he jumped, and his fingers caught the upper lip of the barrel. The Tamer easily swung into the barrel's mouth, and Raya hovered outside. "You go on," she shivered, looking at the cramped, tight, barrel, barely a fraction of her wingspan in diameter, spiralling on into a black oblivion that, once it had her in its clutches, would never let her go . . . okay, she was claustrophobic! Anyone would be after what she'd been through . . . Raya was happy to be returned to the wide, open subspace within the flute.

Pierce resolutely ploughed on, crawling through the barrel. "I just hope this thing doesn't light up with me inside it," he gulped, uncomfortably aware that the minutes were counting down until Jupiter was ready to fire.

But, finally - finally - he reached a hatch into the top that someone - probably that Natsu fellow - had left open. He poked his head out inquisitively, hoping to get the lay of the land, and immediately ducked back, seeing a wave of flame washing towards him. Pierce ducked, feeling his neck heat up as fire washed above him. So much for his theory about Natsu's motion sickness. The building was standing still, so it must not be in effect.

And, it was as he was lying there, breathing, he had an idea. Jupiter was, objectively, a massive gun. And guns generally wouldn't fire properly if their barrels were bent.

He Requipped his flute, and crawled a way back down the barrel, until he was back at the opening. By his count, nine minutes left. Pierce smiled and played the tune to summon Inky.

The baby kraken materialised just outside the lip of the cannon, and clutched to it. "We're pretty high up," she gulped. "I know," Pierce called to her. "I need a lift," he asked, and a tentacle wrapped around him, pulling him out. Inky gently laid him on top of her head. "Good. Now, see this big pipe? Do you think you can bend it?"

"I'll try," the black kraken nodded, careful not to dislodge her rider, and moved to a more appropriate position a little way down the barrel, before wrapping her tentacles around it, and pulling with all of her might. Pierce was gratified to see the rim of the gun slowly begin to bend upwards, into the sky.

Beneath them, Fairy Tail looked at the spectacle in surprise. "He's twisting the barrel!" a brown/yellow-haired man who was wielding Sand magic gasped.

Kana chuckled. "We're sure he's not Fairy Tail?" she half-seriously asked with a wry grin.

Nearby, Elfman cheered. "Whoo! Twist that cannon like a real man!" he shouted.

~P's E~

In the uppermost room of the Phantom Lord castle, Master Jose was watching this turn of events with a twitching eye. "What on earth does that brat think he's doing?" he demanded.

"I think he's rendering the Jupiter cannon redundant, sir," one of the less intelligent guild members offered behind him.

"I can see that!" Jose snapped. "Someone get out there and stop him!" he demanded.

One of the wizards in the group around him stepped forwards. She wore a black choker around her neck, a short black skirt with a golden shirt over it, and golden tights beneath, with a black beret that did nothing to hide the long, silver hair that hung to her waist. Her eyes were deep blue, and a silver sword with a red gem set into the hilt was strapped to her back. She turned her thin, parched lips into a tight smile, raising her left hand.

Jose's lips quirked upwards. "So, you wish to take part, Fleuressca? And here I was thinking that you planned to stay on the sidelines for this entire conflict," he snorted in mild amusement.

The woman frantically shook her head, looking down slightly. Jose chuckled. "Alright, you've made your point. Go on, take care of him. And be careful. If we can't fix the Jupiter Cannon, I might have to activate that. So keep even footing,"

Fleuressca slightly saluted, turned and pushed through the crowd, making her way to the window.

"I'll never know why you keep her around," the black-haired Dragon Slayer seated nearby growled. "She can't even talk, she's useless," Gajeel snorted.

"Now, Gajeel. Fleuressca is an S-Class wizard as well," Jose admonished him. "Keep that in mind. She may not be quite as strong as you are, but she can certainly handle some upstart little chick," he smiled coldly.

~P's E~

Five minutes until Etherion was due to fire, and Inky had successfully bent the barrel of the Jupiter Cannon enough that, were it to fire, the blast would be launched harmlessly into the sky. "Keep going, Inky," Pierce encouraged the kraken. "Let's see if we can bend it enough that if they shoot, they'll hit themselves!" he chuckled.

Inky chirped in agreement, and was about to continue, until the sound of someone clearing their throats behind them interrupted Pierce. The blond-haired boy turned in surprise, and saw an unfamiliar figure standing at the far end of the barrel. "Keep an eye out, girl. We might have trouble," he frowned, carefully jumping down from Inky's head and landing carefully on the barrel. "So, someone finally noticed what we're doing?" he asked with a raised eyebrow and a wry smile, keeping his guard up.

The unfamiliar person shrugged. She used her left hand to point at Pierce, before drawing the finger across her neck in an unmistakeable gesture.

Pierce's smile widened, and he raised his flute. "Oh, so that's how it's gonna be? I'll call you in a bit, Inky," he told his friend, returning her with a quick tune.

The unknown wizard cocked her head and frowned in disappointment.

"It's the flute, isn't it?" Pierce asked. His opponent nodded. "Figures. No one takes the flute seriously at first," he rolled his eyes. "So, how about introductions before we start -" Tired of the small talk, the gold-and-black-clad wizard drew a sharp-looking, green-tinted sword with a ruby set into the holy, and charged forwards. "Or we could get right into the fighting. Sure," Pierce frowned, quickly playing the tune to summon Crystal. The mermaid emerged and carefully balanced on the curved surface of the barrel. "You called me out to fight another girl? You know I don't swing that way," the blue-skinned beast pouted.

"Just hit her," the Tamer requested. "Sure," Crystal grinned, charging forwards and brandishing her daggers. Within ten seconds, they met and passed each other, both launching a strike and pausing a few feet away. The two combatants froze in the usual custom, each looking back at the other to see whose stroke had landed. Pierce smiled, waiting for their enemy to fall over.

But it was Crystal who collapsed, clutching her hip as blood gushed out. Pierce's eyes widened, and he quickly played the tune to return her. The healing properties of the flute would keep her alive, but it would be unwise to call his mermaid out anytime soon.

His assailant threw him a mocking smile, waking forwards with perfect posture and lazily swinging her sword in the air as she went. Pierce groaned. "It just had to be a sword. I knew I should have bought that sword," he muttered to himself, before holding up the flute. "Raya, I know you can hear me. Remember that trick we were practising a little while ago? It's time for a test-run," he spoke into the flute's mouth.

The enemy raised an eyebrow underneath her black beret. "Are you going to say anything?" Pierce asked.

Evidently, that struck a nerve, because she immediately twisted her face into a cruel sneer and charged forwards, carrying her sword in the perfect position.

Pierce calculated the perfect time, counted the seconds, and at the last second, jumped, holding his flute to his mouth. He did a flip as he passed straight over his attacker, and in the apex of his jump, blew three quick, sharp notes.

And each note was punctuated by a fireball flashing out of the instrument, one hitting the woman's beret, the other two singing her hair. Pierce landed in a crouch and straightened, watching for her next move.

She stopped on a dime, quickly patting out the patches of flame in her hair, before yanking her beret off her head and inspecting it. The upper portion was well and truly on fire. The silver-haired lady sighed, throwing it away, where it span and fell into the ocean. Her gaze returned to Pierce, and he gulped. Because now, it bore one of the most terrifying expressions he had ever seen, seething with rage and her dark blue eyes alight with malice. "Uh, sorry about your hat?" he tried, grimacing.

She clenched her teeth and dashed forwards once again.

Pierce returned fire, blasting a series of flaming notes in her direction. Inside the pocket of space within his flute, Raya was breathing an unending steam of flame into the portal, so that every time it opened, a tongue of fire emerged. The overall effect was that every time Pierce blew into his flute, he spat a ball of fire.

But their attacker was unrelenting. She stopped, before raising her sword. A magic circle appeared around the hilt, and the words 'Petal Blizzard,' appeared running down the blade of her sword. Pierce had just enough time to gulp before a storm of multicoloured petals flurried out of the circle, blocking the fireballs and disintegrating before the fire they absorbed could take hold. "Petal magic?" Pierce had time to gasp, before she was charging again, and he retreated backwards, not letting up with the blasts of fire. More and more petals spewed forth, constantly mitigating the fire Pierce threw at her, and constantly drawing closer to him. Pierce cursed. He was in a bit of a fix; the narrow space of the gun's barrel didn't provide enough floor for most of his friends.

He paused. There was one option . . but he really didn't like it. Still, it might be his only chance.

He danced further away, glad for the fact that deflecting his fireballs slowed his opponent down. "Alright. Kit, it's time. You know what to do," he whispered into the flute, and it almost seemed to pulse with energy.

He changed the tune, summoning his yokai friend.

Their opponent actually paused, seeing the ghostly white fox. She cocked her head inquisitively.

"You're sure about this?" Kit questioned, looking back up at his wizard.

"In a situation like this, we don't have much choice. Just get it over with," Pierce moaned.

"Okay," Kit nodded, turning and, with a mighty leap, jumped into his chest.

Fleur stopped dead, her mind racing in shock. 'Was that a yokai? Did . . did that boy just let it possess him?' she mentally gulped.

Pierce clenched his teeth, feeling the yokai's energy flowing through him. His blonde hair, which usually fell around his face like a frame that was missing the bottom part, was blown backwards and lengthened, forming a massive bushy mane that instantly turned white. Muscles rippled and bulged, forcing his clothes to their limits and damaging his shoes beyond repair, and vulpine ears protruded from his hair. Two red markings, shaped like bolts of electricity, appeared on his face, each matching the other and running from his eyes to his chin. The hair on his body bristled and grew, turning into a thin coating of fur that continued underneath his clothing. His teeth sharpened into points, and finger- and toenails into claws, as his mane lengthened, pulled tight where it reached his waist before billowing out again and turning red at the end. The effect this created was that of a bushy tail much like Kit's own. Pierce roared, as his eyes changed into vertical slits and turned yellow, to resemble his friend's.

Her mouth formed a tiny 'o', beholding her opponent's transformation. It . . it was so . . so . . something.

'Sexy?' a voice in her head cheekily whispered. 'Yep, I can get in here like this. Now, let's see what we can find. So your name's Fleuressca Étienne Delacroix, huh? Too much of a mouthful. I'll call you Fleur. And you're mute, but too stubborn to learn telepathy. Good things to know,'

'Get out of my head, you vile creature!' the Petal Mage mentally screamed.

"Jeez, touchy much?" the possessing yokai snorted, verbally.

The glare Fleur shot them would have sent shivers up Pierce's spine if Kit wasn't too busy riding the adrenaline rush to feel fear. "Alright," the yokai grinned a manic grin through his wizard's mouth, baring inhuman fangs. "We'll let our fighting do the talking,"

And with that, Kit launched himself forward in a series of blows that Fleur only barely managed to dodge or block. 'What is this magic?' she asked herself. 'It's like a Take-Over, but that can't be it. It seems too . . mutual,'

"It's called Yokai Unison," Kit explained, continuing to attack. "Where a yokai and a human who trust each other implicitly can temporarily merge to gain incredible combat prowess, however it places both of their bodies under immense strain, and the longer they stay like that for, the worse the lingering effects are,"

Fleur clenched her teeth. This was bad. Another magic circle appeared around her sword's hilt, and glowing green words were etched into the blade; 'Petal Dance,' A cylinder of spinning petals, each with razor-sharp edges, appeared, spewing out of her clothing and encircling her in a defensive shield. She smiled, surely this would force her assailant to relent?

Hardly. Kit threw himself forwards with renewed vigour, the thin layer of white fur rustling and deflecting the majority of the petals, and the ones that did get through his defence, leaving shallow streaks of blood, didn't faze him in the slightest.

Realising that a change in tactics was needed, Fleur, mirroring her opponent's previous move, jumped, leaping gracefully over the enemy and, with a thought, causing a new spell to appear on her sword; 'Petal Punch,'. The flowers surrounding her reformed and condensed into two massive fists, both of which pounded into Kit, blocking him from view behind a multicoloured maelstrom.

"Do you really think that pitiful attacks like this will stop me?" the yokai growled, effortlessly breaking free of the technique. Colourful petals fell around him in every direction, most sinking to the ocean below. The silver-haired wizard's eyes widened. "I can feel it, in every strike you dish out. You don't know what you're fighting for, do you?"

Fleur frowned. That wasn't true. She fought for her own freedom. For the joy of living in the moment.

"Well, that's a pretty horrible thing to fight for, in my opinion," Kit snorted, folding his arms. "Now, me? I'm fighting for Phoenix's Eye. For my family. For every innocent person in Magnolia that this weapon of yours threatens. And for my friends in Fairy Tail. Because that's what it means to carry this mark on your body," he declared, holding up his hand and revealing the blue symbol of an eye framed by feathers. "There was a guy in Lamia Scale who said something once. Whoever fights for the stronger ideology will win. So, what do you think's stronger? My loyalty to Phoenix's Eye and Magnolia, or your selfish desire for freedom?"

He could see it in her eyes now. Her resolve was wavering. Time to press the advantage. Kit charged forward, keeping his balance on the curving surface, towards the image of his opponent, framed as it was against the open sky, and brought his fists forwards, setting them awash with magic power. "Yokai Wave Blaster!" he shouted, bringing his hands into contact with her body. For the briefest second time stood still, and the two opponents' eyes met, dark blue and yellow touching. Fleur had just enough time to think, 'How is it that he's stronger than me? Is this the power his beliefs give him?"

And then the pulse of magic power kicked in, detonating in a white explosion at point-blank range against Fleur's body. She was thrown into the air, flying so high that she soared completely clear of Fairy Tail and crashed somewhere beyond, in Magnolia.

Kit could feel Pierce's power starting to run dry. He knew that, after burning through so much energy, that it wasn't likely he would be able to sustain the possession much longer, and standing on top of the Jupiter Cannon was definitely not a place to take a nap. His gaze fell to the crowd of Fairy Tail guild members, and then to a very reassuring sight a little ways away.

So, it was settled. The yokai ran forwards and, with a mighty leap, threw himself into the air, hoping that he had enough momentum to carry him clear of the ocean. Luckily, he did, landing just a few feet short of the crowd of Fairy Tail wizards - on his face, with an arm outstretched towards the fighters. Someone, he didn't see who, immediately dashed out, grabbed his arm, and dragged him back into the group.

A moment later, Kit became aware of Mirajane Strauss leaning over him. "You're safe, don't worry," she reassured him, probably believing that he was Pierce.

"No, you shouldn't worry," Kit shook his head. "Jupiter's down and the cavalry's about to arrive. Oh, and I'm about to pass out," he informed her with a small smile

"Huh?" Mira blinked. Kit let himself be expelled by Pierce's body, his normal white-and-red fox form appearing on top of his chest as the Tamer's body reverted to normal. Both were evidently sound asleep, and she frowned. It was obvious that Jupiter was no longer a concern, but . . "What cavalry?"

Somewhere behind her, there was an explosion. "Natsu did it!" "He destroyed Jupiter!" the cries came from Fairy Tail came all around her.

And, in the same moment, an army of reinforcing Phoenix's Eye wizards spilled out of the streets in every direction, all screaming war cries and loosing spells into the flock of attacking shades. "Protect Fairy Tail! Down with Phantom Lord!" Master Feng shouted from the head of the pack, Tyria running alongside her. "Phoenix's Eye forever!"

 _~P's E~_

 _Welcome back to Doctor Kit's Documentaries!_

 _Kit is nowhere to be found, and presumably still unconscious. "So, is anyone gonna replace him?" a voice asked from off-stage._

 _"Who could replace him? The only option we have is Happy, and he'd make the documentary about fish or something," another replied._

 _That's it! See you next time, on DK's Ds!_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **So, I was faced with a problem; who in Phantom Lord could Pierce fight? I don't want to mess with any of the canonical matchups, and all of Phantom's S-Class members are . . . wait. It was then that I started picking holes in the idea that the Element Four were Phantom Lord's only S-Class wizards, outside of Gajeel, because that's a horrible way to design a system, and Jose's vain and delusional, but even he could see the folly in a system where S-Class rank is determined primarily by what kind of elemental magic the wizard in question uses. There's no possible way that they're the only S-Class wizards Phantom Lord has. So, I decided that I would need to add a couple of OCs to Phantom Lord's S-Class rosters. Couple this with the realisation that out of Phantom Lord's five canon S-Classes, only one (Juvia) is female, and an OUTSTANDING OC submission by ThePinkJirachi (who I give credit to for Fleur), I knew what I had to do. XD**

 **Earlier today, when I was playing Pokemon: Omega Ruby, I caught and evolved my first Zorua into a Zoroark (something I really should have done a long time ago but didn't because I was distracted with the story and then the Delta Episode) . . so, if anyone was thinking that my design for 'Kit-possessed Pierce' sounded a bit like a white Zoroark with more humanoid bodily proportions and no weird shoulder armour bits, that's why. XD**

 **Funny story, the original design for Pierce's powers stated that he could only tame yokais and spirits, and that he was capable of fusing with any of them in a similar manner to this. Eventually I scrapped that because there were only so many kinds of yokai he could obtain, so I just left it at Kit and made it that he could tame any monster (within reason) instead.**

 **So, nothing else to say? No? Peace!**


	7. Breaker-Breaking Sword: Solamion!

Chapter 7: Breaker-Breaking Sword: Solamion!

"What's the situation?" Sarph directly asked, pushing through the crowd to the group of 'people in charge', which currently consisted solely of Master Feng and Mirajane.

"Natsu and Hapy are still inside the castle, and they just blew up the Jupiter Cannon's power source. Erza used up most of her magic energy blocking the cannon's first blast, and Pierce and Kit exhausted themselves sabotaging the cannon's barrel and fighting one of Phantom Lord's wizards. We have more wounded as well," Mirajane recapped. She nervously looked over to where several wizards were grouped around the dozen or so unconscious bodies, defending them from Jose's Shade army.

"We can't let this continue. We need to take the fight to them!" Sarph declared, pounding a fist into his palm.

"Could you please let go of my fist?" Mirajane sweetly asked. The gold-clad man looked down to see that he was gripping the girl's wrist with his left hand and pressing it into his right palm. "Oh, sorry about that," he sheepishly shrugged.

"Then it's decided," Feng nodded, before snatching Boomer out of the crowd. The portly Sound wizard staggered towards them. "What is it, Master?" he dutifully asked.

"Please amplify my voice so that everyone in the crowd can hear it," the master of Phoenix's Eye requested. Boomer nodded, forming a grey magic circle, which plastered itself to Feng's neck. She cleared her throat, before shouting; "EVERYONE LISTEN UP! IF WE CONTINUE LIKE THIS, WE'LL GET OVERRUN BY THESE THINGS SOONER OR LATER, BUT WE CAN'T ABANDON THIS POSITION EITHER!" The assorted group of wizards staggered in surprise and at the sheer volume Boomer's magic generated at first, but didn't let up firing spells into the crowd of Shade surrounding them, and quickly became accustomed. "SO HERE'S THE PLAN! ANYONE WHO CAN FLY OR JUMP FAR ENOUGH, GET UP THERE AND START KICKING PHANTOM TAILFEATHER! THE REST OF YOU, STAY HERE AND DEFEND FAIRY TAIL!" Feng shrieked.

The wizards around them roared in approval, several lifting off with various magics and soaring towards the enemy guild hall.

"Tailfeather?" Mira questioned, curious. Feng paused, realising her slip. "I suppose the corresponding human vernacular would be 'ass'," she shrugged. "Oh, okay," Mira nodded. Sarph inclined his head in agreement, and Boomer blinked at them both. "Am I the only one who thinks there's something wrong with what Master just said?"

"Well, I'm off," Sarph declared. Large, white wings suddenly materialised on his back, and Mira looked at them in surprise. "Is that Aera? I've never seen anyone except Happy use that magic,"

"Yep. Though it's not really 'my' magic, it's sort of borrowed," Sarph admitted. "Anyway, got to go. You're coming too, short stuff!" he added, grasping Boomer's collar. "I might need your help,"

"Wha - hey, wait! Whoa!" Boomer shrieked in surprise, as, in the blink of an eye, they were twenty feet above the ground. "You're an S-Class wizard, why do you need my help?" he asked.

"Because - oh dear, that does not look good," Sarge suddenly gulped, looking up.

The Phantom Lord guild hall was transforming. Sections reared up, split apart, and rotated, the newly christened lower portion grinding outwards and rearing upwards. Chunks reformed and extended, occasionally breaking off, and a single portion rose, with two windows beginning to glow. The final,effect was that the castle transformed into a giant, humanoid colossus.

Master Feng gasped. "To think that Phantom Lord would have something like this in their arsenal,"

And, up on the machine's head, Jose folded his arms irritably. "To think that these fairy brats would force me to use this," he growled. "Enough! I'll just kill two birds with one stone and wipe them all out with the Super Mage Giant Phantom MK-II!" he declared, fuming with anger. "Begin the casting process!" Jose snapped.

Meanwhile, downstairs, Sarph was surprised to feel something cold wrap around his leg. "Mind if I snag a lift?" Grey Fullbuster shouted up, grasping the other end of the chain. "The more the merrier!" the S-Class wizard replied, diligently flying on.

Until he saw the machine raise its arm, and causing what looked like a thin slice of a magic circle to appear. A thin slice that slowly got wider and wider.

~P's E~

Feng gulped. "I recognise that spell," she frowned. "That's the Abyss Breaker!"

Mira' eyes widened. "You're right. And an Abyss Breaker that large . . . it could wipe out all of Magnolia!"

"And all of both of our guilds, too," Feng nodded. "Get your tails in gear, everyone! We need to win before it can finish casting that spell!"

Mira paused thoughtfully. "Wait, doesn't the Abyss Breaker require elemental sources from fire, water, earth and air?"

"To start it, yes, but once it's begun, as long as even one of the four elemental sources remains, it will continue," Feng confirmed. "Wait. Phantom's Element Four. You don't think -"

"Exactly. It has to be the Element Four that are powering the Abyss Breaker. Which means that if our guys up in the tower can beat all of them, then the spell will be stopped!" the white-haired bartender grinned. "Okay, Warren, relay the message . . . oh. Right. Warren isn't back yet," she sweatdropped. "There wouldn't happen to be any telepathic mages in Phoenix's Eye, would there?" Mira asked.

Feng shrugged. "Sorry, girlie. I'm fresh out,"

Mira frowned up at the Abyss Breaker. It wasn't good. Sure, their wizards could beat the Element Four, but could they do it in time? It wasn't promising.

An idea struck her. Phantom, for whatever reason, wanted Lucy. Something about her having a rich father. Lucy was off at the safe house in town, but Phantom didn't know that.

(Meanwhile, Gajeel was, at that moment, in the middle of beating up Reedus and kidnapping Lucy at said safe house.)

She frowned, before focusing her Transformation Magic, and changed into an identical duplicate of Lucy. "Cover me," she told Feng, who's eyes boggled. "What are you planning?"

"Lucy's going to surrender to Phantom Lord," Mira winked.

~P's E~

"So, why do you need me?" Boomer asked the older man. Sarph looked down and smiled. "Simple. I'm gonna be fighting that air wizard Phantom has, Aria. And your Sound magic can nullify air magic, so you're the logical choice for backup," he nonchalantly explained.

"I wouldn't say nullify, more like impede," Boomer awkwardly corrected him. "You'd be surprised!"

A moment later, Gray called up, "You can let me off here. I'll smash some stuff inside," he declared, swinging forwards on the chain and grasping a window. Sarph obediently paused long enough for the Ice wizard to break the window open and get inside, before shaking the chain around his ankle free and flying on. "So, were are we going to find this Aria guy?" Boomer queried.

"He is the most powerful member of Phantom Lord aside from Jose himself, so naturally he'll be waiting somewhere near the top. It just makes sense," Sarph nonchalantly explained.

Boomer paused, processing this. "You call that something that makes sense?" he indignantly demanded.

"Yes," Sarph shrugged. "Now, hold on tight," he grinned, using his Aera and suddenly smashing into a window. His wings vanished, and he landed in a crouch while Boomer fell to the floor in a heap, his boombox crashing to the marble floor.

"So sad. It's so sad that you broke my favourite window!" a mournful voice sobbed from somewhere in front of them. Boomer looked up in surprise, and, to his disbelief, spotted Aria, in his tall, green-clad glory, wearing a large, round hat and a blindfold, the wind wizard of Phantom Lord, standing right in front of them, at the other end of the large hallway that Serph had deposited them into. His jaw fell open. "How . . how did you . . are you psychic or something?" he spluttered in disbelief as Sarge stood up, reaching for the hill of the claymore strapped to his back.

"So, it is my understanding that you hurt Makarov Dreyar, is that right?" the gold-clad wizard frowned.

"Yes, and it was so sad, but it had to be done," Aria shook his head, looking down.

"I happen to respect Fairy Tail's guild master quite a lot. So hearing that you used a despicable and dishonourable technique like the Metsu spell on him, that makes me angry," Sarph frowned, before chuckling. "And, to coin a phrase, you wouldn't like me when I'm angry,"

"So sad . . it's so unbelievably sad that you're ripping off old movies!" Aria moaned.

"Yeah, I know, which is why I'm gonna beat you quick so that I can stop," Sarph frowned. "Boomer, get your boombox ready. On my signal, pump out the tunes as loud as you can," he commanded out of the side of his mouth. Boomer nodded, adjusting the specifications of his machine and checking the SE plug.

"It's so incredibly sad that you're going to die by my hand today!" Aria wep, outstretching his palms. "Airspace; Zetsu!" he declared.

"Now, Boomer!" Sarph shouted.

Boomer probably said something witty and cool-sounding when he turned on his speaker system. His mouth certainly moved. Unfortunately, the rock music it suddenly started blasting throughout the room and beyond was so loud that it drowned out all other noise.

Upstairs, Jose frowned as distant, but still clearly audible, music suddenly began to come through the floor. "What is that racket?" he demanded.

Elfman, who was currently in a battle with Monsieur Sol, paused briefly as he heard the noise. "Now that's manly music," he grinned.

Over on the machine's shoulder, Gray blinked as rock music began to pour out of the broken windows. "Gah, make it stop!" he moaned.

"I agree, that is hardly tasteful," Juvia frowned.

Aria didn't think much of it at first, but then he noticed that Sarph was seemingly unaffected by his attack. His mouth moved, but no one heard a word that he said.

 **(Subtitles will now be provided for your viewing pleasure.)**

 _What is this? What happened to my Zetsu? Wait. Oh no. If I can't hear anything, they I can't use my airspace magic to know where people are. The only thing that I can trace is that boombox. I have no idea where my enemy is!_

Sarph's mouth moved, but no one heard a word he said as he unsheathed his sword.

 _You're probably wondering why your attack didn't work. It's why I brought Boomer. The waves of sound emanating from his boombox are causing such intense vibrations in the air that your air-based attacks are being cancelled out._

Aria, having heard none of this, didn't realise what was going on and futilely continued to try to launch blasts of magic in the direction that he had last sensed Sarph, hoping that he might hit him.

 _Zetsu. Zetsu. Zetsu. Oh, it's so sad that my attacks aren't working! Wait. Could it be that the vibrations in the air caused by that boombox are so intense that they're cancelling out my airspace attacks?_

He smiled.

 _So, all I have to do is destroy the boombox and my magic will work again? Easy. Airspace; Teleportation!_

Sarph watched as Aria turned his body into air, no doubt in hopes of passing, intangible, around him and reappearing near Boomer to destroy the music. He shook his head with a grim smile, mouthing something.

 _I was hoping that you'd do that._

Aria silently screamed as his aerial form was thrown across the room by the waves of sound. He frantically rematerialised, just in time to crash into the wall, before sliding to the floor in a heap.

Recovering quickly, he stood and screeched in anger.

 _Fine. It's so sad but you leave me no choice!_

And with that, he ripped off his blindfold, fixing his dark eyes on Sarph, who was holding his large, golden sword out in the ready stance as he continued to calmly advance towards him.

 _I invoke Airspace; Zero! It's so sad that you're going to be claimed by the airspace of death that kills all who enter it!_

Brownish smoke began to billow around him, forming a circle as Aria outstretched his hands. It was incredibly tiring to push through the unrelenting waves of sound, but he managed it, forcing his Airspace; Zero through the tormented air towards the enemy.

And, with a single blow from his sword, Sarph cut through the spell and dissipated it. Aria's eyes widened in shock. That was impossible.

The golden S-Class wizard snorted, trying to say something.

 _You don't know what just happened, do you? My sword is the Spell-Shattering Sigil Solamion. With a single blow from this blade, I can sever the connection between a wizard and their spell. And when they aren't connected to a wizard to guide them, spells just vanish into the ethernano. This in itself makes me a formidable warrior, but it's not everything that I am. How do you think I knew what kind of magic you used and that the best way to counter it was intense sound? I am a practitioner of the relatively rare technique of Archive magic. Using this skill, I perform research on my opponents before I face them. I learn their every spell, their every trait, their every option, and how to counter it all. This lockdown is why I am an S-Class wizard. This is what makes me one of the strongest wizards in Phoenix's Eye._

He paused, shaking his head, before shrugging and continuing to speak as he advanced the last few feet between himself and Aria, who was finally realising exactly how hopelessly locked down his every ability was.

 _I don't know why I'm saying all this. I know that you can't hear a word I say, after all. I guess I just like to talk._

Aria sank to his knees, clasping his hands together and weakly, silently, begging.

 _No more. Please, I implore you. Oh, how sad it is that the great Aria's end would be brought about in such a sad way as this._

Sarph looked down at him in disdain, before using the heavy flat of his sword to club his foe over the head, twice in rapid succession, and immediately knock him unconscious.

 _How disappointing. I expected more from the self-proclaimed strongest guild in Fiore._

He paused, considering this, before throwing his head back and laughing.

 _I guess that's why they're the 'self-proclaimed' strongest guild._

He turned to look back at Boomer and made a sweeping motion with his hands, signalling to cut the music. The Sound wizard nodded, using the last of his strength to switch the machine off, before collapsing over it. "I'm exhausted," he weakly moaned.

Sarph nodded in concern. Boomer had obviously poured every drop of his magic power into keeping the noise loud enough that Aria's magic would be rendered ineffective. "How are you feeling?" he gently asked.

"I'll be fine," the black-haired mage weakly nodded, before collapsing again. "Then again,"

"I'd better get you out of here," Sarph frowned. "But then who's gonna take the fight to Jose?"

It was about then when a certain pink-haired Dragon Slayer, accompanied by his blue cat, ran into the room. "Whoa, you already took out that wind guy? Aww, no fair. I wanted to fight him," Natsu moaned, before fixing his eyes on the two wizards. "Hey, you're from that other guild, right? Uh, Pharaoh Sigh, was it?"

"Not even close," Boomer moaned.

"Not quite, but doesn't matter. I kinda need to take him back down to the others so he can rest up. I don't suppose you'd mind getting up there and kicking Jose and his rats' collective asses? Like, on my behalf?"

Natsu paused, but shrugged. "Well, I was planning on doing it anyway, but sure!"

Sarph smiled. "Great. See you at the victory party?"

"You know it!" Natsu grinned, running towards the opposite door.

~P's E~

Mirajane, who had returned to the ground after being rescued by Elfman, cheered. Whatever was going on up in the castle, the Abyss Breaker was falling apart, with Fire, Earth and Air all gone, only the Water member of the Element Four had yet to be defeated. "We're almost there!"

"And I'm certain that our guildmates won't let us down," a familiar voice came from behind her.

"Yup!" Mira grinned, before processing the voice. "Master?" she gasped, wheeling on her heel in shock to look at the short man. "Hey," Makarov Dreyar cheerfully smiled.

Feng raised her eyebrows, impressed. "I see that Porlyusica is as skilled as ever. I thought that that Aria person's Metsu spell would put you out f commission for at least a few months," she commented.

"Well, yes, but I actually have Mystogan to thank for my speedy recovery. But we can discuss the finer details later," the Fairy Tail master shrugged, and a stormy look crossed his face. "There are powerful wizards in both of our guilds, but none of them are strong enough to stand up to Jose. I need to do that myself," he growled.

"I will assist," Feng offered, but Makarov shook his head. "You are needed down here, coordinating the efforts. And besides, you're a powerful wizard, but I think Jose might be out of your league,"

Feng was hurt, but nodded. After all, she was no Wizard Saint.

"Now, if you'll excuse me," the shorter master frowned, before, with an impossibly massive jump, he leapt into the castle.

A few minutes later, Sarph came flying down, carrying Boomer. "We got wounded," he reported, pausing near the protected area with the other injured wizards. There were three walls of magic stretching up int the sky that prevented Shades from entering, one composed of a raging blizzard maintained by Eve, another formed from Macao of Fairy Tail's purple fire, and the third made out of enchanted plastic that Blanca had created. "He's unhurt, but too exhausted to do anything any time soon," he told Eve, whose wall of snow was beginning to crumble.

"Your protective magic's looking a little weak, might want to reinforce it," Russell advised her. Eve nodded. "Get him inside before I refresh the enchantment," she commanded Sarph, before shivering. "That is, if you don't mind,"

"On it," Sarph nodded, carelessly throwing Boomer into the pile. Eve carefully caught him and dropped him on the ground, before redoubling her Snow enchantment. The blizzard suddenly tripled in intensity, tiny flakes of snow that were as hard as diamond ripping into Shades above them.

"I'd better get back out there," the Archive user nodded. "See you later,"

Feng and Mira watched the rest of the battle, which ended more or less as everyone expected. The Abyss Breaker vanished, signifying that Julia, the last member standing of the Element Four, had fallen, and shortly afterwards, the upper section of the castle was blown to pieces by fire and metal. Feng watched, impressed. "That's some strong fire magic," she commented.

"That's Natsu. He's a Fire Dragon Slayer," Mira explained.

"Dragon Slayer, eh? Maybe I should look into getting one of those for my guild," Feng mused to herself. "Good luck, they're a rarity,"

And then, there was ain incredible, blinding brilliance that left Fairy Tail and Phoenix's Eye untouched, but completely obliterated the Shade ghouls. "That's Fairy Law, isn't it?" the Phoenix's Eye guild master's eyes widened.

"That has to be Master. Only the Fairy Tail guild master is taught to cast Fairy Law," Mirajane commented, smiling. "It's all over for Phantom Lord now,"

"We won?" Macao questioned. "We won!" Blanca agreed, leaping up and enveloping the older man in a hug. Macao's eyes widened, before closing in excitement at the feeling of the younger woman's chest pressing against him. From across the battlefield, Wakaba looked over and snorted, "Lucky bastard,"

The protective tower of fire, snow and plastic collapsed, disintegrating, and leaving the injured few open. Erza immediately staggered out. "I take it we won," she immediately demanded of Mira. "Yep, we're on the clear," she grinned.

"You should have let me out," the redhead glowered at Eve. "I'm sorry. It's just that Mira told me specifically not to let you out and fight because you're too injured to do anything," the girl meekly replied.

Erza rolled her eyes, but accepted the statement's logic. "So, now we deal with the cleanup, I assume?"

"Yep," Mira sighed. "I don't suppose that you and your guild would be willing to - huh?" she interrupted herself as she turned to Feng. Or, rather, the empty space where Feng had been standing two minutes ago.

Further inspection revealed that Eve had vanished as well, and Blanca's white hair was vanishing into the crowd. "Where are they going?" Erza frowned, watching Sarph swoop down, pick up the injured members of Phoenix's Eye, and fly away.

"They probably want to get out of helping us rebuild the guild hall," Mira sighed.

As if to confirm her theory, Master Feng's voice echoed through the entire area. "Phoenix's Eye, scram! Don't let the fairies guilt you into helping rebuild!"

"That's classic Phoenix's Eye for you," Makarov commented, suddenly appearing nearby the two girls. "It's probably for the best, honestly. If we let them help out with rebuilding the guild hall, then we'd find it full of booby-traps and pranks,"

"So, it's business as usual between us and them once more?" Kana asked, sidling up to the group. "I'm cool with whatever as long as we don't make them mad enough to refuse my access to their cellars,"

"Frankly, I'm surprised they granted you that in the first place," Makarov chuckled. "But yes. We rebuild, clean up, and then it's business as usual,"

 _~P's E~_

 _"Welcome to Doctor Kit's Documentaries!" Kit declared. "Now that I'm back in action, I am happy to resume my duties,"_

 _"Today we're talking about Sound Magic, and how Boomer uses it,"_

 _"Some of you might have noticed - by which I mean, everyone except Natsu - that Boomer always carries around a giant boombox. Unlike most mages, he uses technology to fight, which is powered by an SE plug that he wears 24/7; in other words, Boomer's increases in strength aren't measured by how strong the spells that he can use are, it's by how long and loud he can keep the boombox running," Kit explained, showing a diagram in which little blue arrows flow out of a fat person into what looks like a shoebox they're carrying._

 _"This isn't the case for most Sound wizards, who usually use Sound-based magic in pretty much how you'd expect," Kit explained. "And Boomer has conventional stuff too, as seen by his Sound Shield, but for offensive spells he uses his boombox as a focal point, kind of like a magic wand,"_

 _"Of course, there's a weakness to this. Because his boombox is technology, a yokai like myself can possess it," the white/red fox grinned. "That's all for now, adieu!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **If this wasn't clear, just imagine all the stuff that happened in canon happening sort of 'in the background'. Natsu beat up Totomaru, Elfman rescued Mira from Sol, Gray 'defeated' Juvia. The only difference is that Erza didn't (somehow, impossibly) recover and beat Aria. Instead, I used him as a patsy to demonstrate Sarph's strength and abilities. Admittedly, Archive wasn't my original plan for him. I was going to go with a type of Holy magic. But I had a better idea for who could use that, so he gets Archive and a deceptively gung-ho attitude. ^^**

 **Sorry that I skimmed over the end of the Phantom Lord arc, but I just didn't want to waste time rehashing the events that closed the arc off and there's no reason whatsoever for anyone from Phoenix's Eye to be involved with Lucy confronting her father.**

 **Anyway, I don't think that I've got anything else to say, so peace!**


	8. An S-Class Mission

Chapter 8: An S-Class Mission

Brain, guild master of the dark guild Oracion Seis, looked down at the large room that the observation bay he stood in overlooked. "How goes the experiment?" he asked one of the assistants nearby.

"We've implanted the lacrima. Project R.D.S. is officially functional. Now we just need to figure out how to use its power without killing it," a lackey reported.

"Yes, that will be difficult. Mind control is a kind of Lost Magic that I haven't quite worked out how to revive yet," Brain nodded, frowning to himself. "In any case, how are the preprogrammed attacks holding up?" he questioned.

"Observe," the second, more senior, of the two lackeys smiled, pressing a button. In the room beneath, a humanoid being, hidden in shadow, convulsed in pain as electricity surged through the chains binding it. Knowing what it had to do to make the pain stop, it unleashed a massive burst of grey energy, that swallowed up a nearby target dummy. When the energy cleared, the target was obliterated, without even ashes remaining.

Brain slowly clapped. "Very good," he smiled, nodding. "Now, how does it work on living beings?"

"We, ah, don't know, sir," the lackey shook his head. "Why not?" the master of the Oracion Seis asked.

"Because we don't have any appropriate test subjects for it to practise on," the scientist explained.

Brain seized him by the collar, before throwing him into the window. The glass broke, causing the unfortunate man to fall to the ground, a little way in front of the test subject.

"It looks to me like we have an appropriate subject now," Brain commented. The senior lackey nodded, pressing the button. Once more, electricity coursed through the chain, warning their occupant to fire once more, and it did, blasting a stream of grey energy at the unfortunate man. He screamed, a noise which which abruptly died with him, as when the second roar cleared, there was nothing left but a charred, black skeleton. Brain frowned. "There's still a skeleton left," he shook his head.

"We'll work on boosting its power further," the surviving lackey nodded.

"Good. See if you can get it to the point where there's merely a pile of ashes left of a living being. That will be good progress," Brain recommended, before turning to leave. "I'll be back to check on your progress next month. Don't disappoint me," he recommended, his gaze making it clear that if the other scientist failed, he would be joining his former colleague.

~P's E~

The Magic Council was a pain in the ass, Pierce reflected to himself as he staggered out of yet another (and hopefully his last) session of being interviewed by some big-nosed councilman.

Luckily for Tyria, no one in the Rune Knights made the connection between her and the bandit Shellshocker, who had been plaguing the roads around Crocus until a month ago. So she was off the hook as well, and fell into company with Pierce as he wandered back into town from the encampment the Council had set up outside Magnolia. "So, we're in the clear?" the wizard asked.

"Yep. I don't suppose you've seen Sarph?" the Tamer asked.

"Oh, that's right, you were going to go on that job with him. No, I haven't, but do you think he would mind if I came?" Tyria asked, but Pierce shook his head. "Sorry, but I don't think that Sarph would be happy with that. I've worked with him before, so he knows me and knows that I can handle whatever he has lined up. He wouldn't take me if he didn't. But you're a rookie, he's never met you, probably doesn't even know what kind of magic you use . . ." Pierce trailed off, and Tyria nodded. "Fair enough," she admitted.

Requipping his flute, Pierce played the tune to summon Kit, and the vulpine yokai emerged. "Good to see you're alright," he nodded to Pierce.

"Let's head into town, get back to the guild hall. It's not like we have much lines up until Sarph shows," Pierce suggested, and Tyria nodded.

Behind them, In the treeline along the road, a set of dark blue eyes, framed in a perfectly dimpled face, followed them. Fleur squinted, watching Pierce's every move.

"Why are we here?" another voice interrupted her, and she turned to glare at Totomaru. The fire wizard returned her glare with an impatient look, folding his arms. "We need to move on, Fleur. Phantom was disbanded by the Magic Council. Sol and Aria have already gone travelling in hopes that they can find a guild to accept them. Gajeel's off brooding somewhere, and I think Juvia plans to actually join Fairy Tail, assuming they'll accept her," the man narrated, tweaking his black-and-white hair impatiently. "I get that you have something in mind, but why are we stalking the guy who beat you up?"

Fleur rolled her eyes. She pulled up her shirt to reveal the empty patch of skin on her hip where the Phantom Lord guild mark had, until a few days ago, resided, and tapped it, before pointing to the Phoenix's Eye wizards.

"You want to put them on your chest? Did you learn Picto Magic while I wasn't looking or something?" Totomaru frowned in confusion.

The Petal Mage facepalmed, realising that she had never actually shown Totomaru where her guild mark was. Her friend, misinterpreting her actions, continued to cluelessly guess at their pseudo-game of charades. "You want them to beat you up again? Are you a masochist now?" he blinked.

Fleur sighed, beckoning, and continued to creep through the undergrowth. Her former guildmate, deciding that he didn't have much else to do, followed her.

Eventually, Pierce, Kit and Tyria, unaware of their pursuers, reached Phoenix's Eye. The guild hall was in good condition, though after the majority of its members took a few days off, their individual finances were running low. So there was a massive job rush, leaving the board and the hall virtually empty. There were a couple of elderly patrons nursing mugs of beer in the corners, but otherwise, the sole occupants were the two wizards and their yokai, and Sarah, manning the bar.

"No jobs," Tyria moaned, taking a seat at the bar.

"Give it time. I'm sure something will come up. In the meantime, want a drink?" Sarah kindly asked, carrying a platter of bottles containing various kinds of drinks to her. Tyria accepted a cola, and Pierce a bottle of lemonade.

Outside, Fleur began to sneak towards a window. When Totomaru realised that she was planning to watch the inside of the guild, he groaned. "Enough with this. I'm going to get a drink," he informed her. "I'd love a hot cocoa,"

Fleur waved, not really listening, doing her best to strain her ears to catch snatches of Pierce and Tyria's conversation (as Kit had vanished once more, as he usually did at meals) when Totomaru suddenly walked in through the main doors.

Pierce spotted him and frowned. Tyria followed suit as he sat at the table next to theirs with his back to them and waved Sarah over. "Would you mind getting me a mild ale?" he politely asked.

"I'm sorry, but I can only serve free drinks to members of the guild," Sarah apologetically shook her head, but the fire wizard nodded. "I know. I'm willing to pay," he nodded, patting his pocket.

Sarah paused, considering this, but nodded. "I suppose that's fine," she uncertainly shrugged, returning to the bar.

"May I ask why you're here?" Pierce frowned. "Weren't you with Phantom Lord?" His flute appeared in his hand.

"Relax, I'm not here to fight," Totomaru shook his head. "I'm sure you heard that Phantom Lord got disbanded?" he pointed out.

"Which could be why you'd come here looking for revenge," Tyria pointed out.

"It could also be that I've come here looking for work," Totomaru evenly replied. "I do, of course, understand that there will be bad feelings stirred up against me for my role in the inter-guild war. I would feel the same were the positions reversed, and if your master does not want me around, then I will accept her verdict. But, for the time being, at least, I want to see how this guild compares to Phantom Lord. I plan to make sure that I am satisfied with the guild before I ask if the guild is satisfied with me," he explained.

Sarah returned, carrying his drink. "That does make sense. And, really, you were just doing you job, right? Nothing personal?" she questioned, and Totomaru nodded. "Nothing personal,"

"I-ah can respect that attitude," a snide, throaty voice came from the entrance, and all four humans turned to look at the newcomer. Totomaru blinked, wondering if he was hallucinating. Tyria's jaw dropped. Pierce raised a surprised eyebrow, and Sarah nonchalantly waved, "Oh, hello Garrotte,"

"That's Garrotte?" Tyria asked in surprise, looking down at the newcomer as he approached their table.

"And don't you forget it," the short figure smirked, walking past them and taking a seat at the far side of their table. "So, I-ah hear there's a party I-ah missed. Mind filling me in on the details?" Garrotte questioned, a notable southern accent in his voice.

"Sure," Pierce nodded, beginning to recap the events surrounding the Phantom Lord attack. As he did, Totomaru curiously leant over to Tyria. "Am I hallucinating, or is your friend talking to a yellow cat wearing a cowboy hat?" he asked.

"I'm just as confused as you are," the dark-skinned wizard admitted.

Garrotte was a (comparatively tall), yellow cat, with a short, twitchy tail and a large brown fedora hiding his ears. A loop of what looked suspiciously like barbed wire hung off his back, and he wore brown leather cowboy boots, complete with spurs on the bottom. "Y'all aren't taking me seriously, are you?" he frowned, looking at the other two and interrupting Pierce. "Maybe it would help if I-ah did this," he smirked, and with a poof of smoke, transformed.

Totomaru's lips formed a tiny hole as he took in the cat, who had suddenly grown to about seven times his previous size, and swollen with muscles that would make most men cry.

"There's a reason I-ah am one of Phoenix's Eye's S-Class wizards," Garrotte grinned, baring his teeth. "And it ain't my stylin' hat,"

"Don't get too over-awed," Pierce warned Tyria. "Yes, he's S-Class, but as the guild's S-Class wizards stack up against each other, Garrotte's the weakest of the lot," he explained.

"I-ah am still more S-Class than you, beast boy," Garrotte huffed, shrinking back to his normal form.

"How do the S-Classes all stack up?" Tyria asked, curious.

Pierce considered this for a second. "Well, Garrotte over there's on the bottom. Above him is Sarph, who you know. The Power Twins, who you met last week, are about on the same level as him individually, but together they outclass him, and their combined power is on the same level as the guild's third-strongest member, Bleeding-Vein Artorias,"

"What's he like?" Tyria asked.

"He's alright, but kind of distant. Also, whatever you do, don't mention him to Sarph. In addition to being third-strongest, Artorias is also the youngest S-Class wizard. And it kind of rankles with Sarph that someone who's ten years younger than him is twice as powerful as him," Pierce explained with a wry smile.

"Makes sense," Tyria nodded. "And the two most powerful?"

Pierce shivered. "They're both incredibly powerful, and they've never gone head to head, so no one's sure who gets the top spot. Master Feng is one of them. She technically doesn't count, being the guild master, but no one's going to argue that she could take any other wizard in the guild. And the other . . . well, I'm glad she almost never comes by the guild hall. She terrifies me, and I really don't want to talk about her," he admitted.

"I see," Tyria gulped.

"Oh, Sarph? He should be here any minute," Garrotte commented. "I-ah saw him on my way into town, he was stocking up for a job by the looks of things,"

As if on cue, Sarph burst into the guild hall, dragging a gold-black-clad body with silver hair behind him. "I found this skulking around the windows, trying to spy," he frowned, holding up Fleur.

Totomaru rolled his eyes. "Would you mind putting her back? The entire exercise of letting her work up the nerve to actually enter the building is redundant if you force her inside,"

The knight blinked. "Oh - sorry," he sheepishly admitted, turning to leave and return Fleur to her vantage point.

"Oh, just bring her in," Pierce groaned. "I take it she's with you?" he irritably asked Totomaru, who nodded. "She's also mute, so don't take it as rudeness if she doesn't talk," he quickly explained. Fleur nodded, a cross look on her face as Sarph unceremoniously dumped her in the chair next to Totomaru, before sitting on the opposite side of Pierce from Tyria. He hefted a bag that looked to be filled with supplies. "So, ready to go, Pierce?" he cheerfully asked.

The Tamer nodded. "Whenever you're ready," He turned to Sarah. "I trust you can handle these two?" he asked, gesturing to Totomaru and Fleur. "I'll take care of it," she nodded.

"Nice to see you again, by the way," Pierce threw Fleur a smile as he rose to his feet. Sarph followed suit, lifting the bag with him. "To the train station!" he declared. Tyria waved goodbye, as did Sarah, as the two boys left. The former Phantom Lord wizards watched them go, as did Garrotte. "So, where's he going?" the cat asked.

"On an S-Class job. Something about destroying a dark guild who's trying to use illegal magic to create some new kind of monster. Sarph could handle it by himself, but Pierce always wants to come along on missions involving monsters and beasts in the hope that he can tame them," Tyria briefly explained with a shrug. Her short locks of blue hair shook around her shoulders.

"Yep, that sounds right," Garrotte shrugged.

"Is it just gonna be the two of us and my beasts?" Pearce asked as they left the guild hall.

"Nah. Hare's probably gonna tag along too, because she insists. But we won't wait for her," Sarph smirked.

~P's E~

Unfortunately, Hare had predicted that the golden wizard would attempt to leave her behind, and was already waiting at the train station. Ergo, the two males were subjected to three hours of watching the kimono-clad woman brood. "Why can't this train be greener?" she huffed, glaring at the red upholstery and blue paint.

"You want it to be more eco-friendly?" Sarge tried, oblivious to Pierce's shaking his head. "I agree, the tracks can provide a hazard to careless wildlife, perhaps fences should be installed to ensure that -"

"I don't give a crap about the environment. I just hate red. And blue," she added, glowering at Pierce's appropriately coloured shirt. "What's wrong with my shirt?" he defensively protested.

"It's worn out, smelly and a little bit ripped," Kit helpfully piped up from the armrest. "Gee, thanks,"

~P's E~

It was twilight by the time that the three wizards were crouched on a hill in the forest, overlooking the stronghold belonging to the dark guild of Crypt's Spawn. It was a tall building, in the shape of a semicircle, propped on its side and supported by a network of struts. It bulged with an assortment of square blocks of rooms, grey, purple and navy blue seemingly randomly piled onto the basic frame wherever they would fit.

"Ugly thing," Hare snorted.

"Hard to attack, too. Limited number of entrances from the ground, you can't approach from the air without being seen, and they no doubt have anti-air defences,"

"Oh, that's not a problem," Pierce brushed the idea of being shot down away. "I have a friend that can handle anything that shoots at us. Problem is, she can only carry one,"

"I can fly, and I can lift Hare," Sarph reminded his younger accomplice.

"So, the plan is to go for the top and work our way down," Hare summarised.

Sarph grinned. "It makes perfect sense. Towers are designed so that the occupants can retreat upwards from people attacking on the ground. Whoever's above has the advantage,"

"And by going for the top and working out way down, we turn their advantage against them," Pierce grinned. "Genius,"

"Convenient," Sarph corrected him. "You may as well summon your firebird now. Waiting for cover of night will give us no advantage with her flaming wings lighting up the sky,"

Pierce blinked. "You think I meant Raya? Oh, no no. I have someone else in mind for this situation," he grinned. "And we will want to wait for cover of night for her,"

"You tamed a new flying beast?" Sarph asked with interest. "When?"

"Almost four months ago. You should swing by the guild hall more often, your information might be more up to date," Pierce commented with a chuckle.

"Forgive me for being S-Class," Sarph snidely replied. "But by all means, summon this new beast,"

The Beast Tamer Requipped his flute and played a fast, zippy tune, punctuated by short, high-pitched notes. The typical black portal opened at the end of the flute, and expelled a large, heaving black mass, punctuated by thin stripes of yellow. Large, webbed, glassy wings burst outwards and fluttered, allowing the Beast to rise to her feet, a large, swollen abdomen trailing behind her. She yawned, stretching four black arms, each with three digits on the end, though, oddly, the upper pair were a lot wider than the lower pair, and turned to look at the three wizards, revealing a surprisingly human face. If not for the black fur on her face, multifaceted, red, insectoid eyes, and mandibles around her mouth, she could have passed for human.

"This is Victoria," Pierce introduced his friend, who shot only a passing glance at Sarph and instead focused on Hare. "I take it you heard the plan?" he asked the black humanoid bee.

"Yezzzz," she nodded. Her wings twitched impatiently. "Did you zzzzummon me here juzzzzt to wait?" she irritably asked.

"It probably won't be long," Pierce defended himself. "Besides, did you have anything better to do?"

The queen bee folded her arms. All four of them. "Well, no, but that'zzzz not the point," she snorted. "I azzzzume that your plan is for me to uzzzze my dronezzzz to take any hitzzzz that are fired at uzzzz?"

"Pretty much," Pierce nodded.

"Then I'll get on that," she nodded. Her abdomen twitched and shivered in a very disconcerting way, and Hare suddenly looked a little bit nauseous.

"And now we wait," Sarph shrugged, bringing up his Archive screens in front of him. Pierce settled down against a mossy rock for a nice nap, and Hare took a seat nearby.

Bored, Victoria settled down next to her, watching her carefully. The black-haired Speed wizard shifted away.

With a smile tugging at her lip, Victoria shifted closer, her abdomen trailing behind her.

Hare shifted further down the log again, and the bee followed. The wizard shifted one more time - and abruptly ran out of log, falling to the ground in a heap. Victoria chuckled. "I thought you seemed familiar,"

"What are you talking about? I've never seen you before in my life," Hare huffed.

"Oh, I don't mean you specifically. I mean, you remind me of me. When I was human," Victoria shrugged.

Hare paused, processing this. "What?"

The black bee chuckled. "Let me tell you a story. Once upon a time, there was a woman, a lot like you, who was by far the most beautiful, attractive person in her village. Everyone wanted her, and she knew it. She thought it made her better than everyone else, that it made her too good to even talk to her peers," she began.

"I'm not that bad, I talk," Hare frowned.

"I didn't say that," Victoria shrugged. "One day, she hears a story about a magical honey that enhances the beauty of anyone who drinks it, which can only be found high in the mountains. She, of course, thought that she deserved to have this beauty-enhancing honey, so she packs a bag and sets out to hike to the top of the mountain to find this honey. After a long trip, she finally finds this magic honey, so what does she do? She drinks it. As much of it as she can. And it doesn't enhance her beauty at all. Instead, it turns her into a horrifying monster," Victoria shivered, confirming Hare's suspicions that the girl was talking about herself. "So she returns home, hoping that someone can help her. But what does she find? No one wants to. She spent so much of her life rebutting everyone around her and not making friends with anyone that no one likes her or cares about her enough to even try to fix her. She gets run out of town, exiled into the wilderness, and no matter how many times she tries to go home, she just gets kicked out again because no one wants her around. Eventually, she becomes such a bother to the town that they file a request for a wizard from a guild to come and deal with her," Victoria shook her head.

"I'm not stupid. I know you're talking about yourself, and I know that the wizard who was hired to get rid of you was Pierce," Hare pointed out. "What I don't see is how exactly this relates to me,"

"Because you act the same way that I did. Like you're better than everyone else. Maybe it's not by way of beauty, but that kind of attitude is just going to land you in trouble," the bee girl pointed out. "I mean, look at me now. Living inside a magic flute with only a promiscuous mermaid for company,"

"Which means that as long as I don't eat any cursed honey, I'm not going to end up like you," Hare reasoned.

"Well, maybe for you it wouldn't be beauty. What if you were to hear about, say, enchanted ice that increases the magic power of anyone who consumes it?" Victoria suggested. "Everyone would be fine and dandy until you turn into a blizzardvern,"

Hare opened her mouth to rebuff this point, but paused. That was actually worryingly feasible. It was the kind of thing she'd do. "Okay, I see your point," she nodded.

"Good," Victoria nodded, and the two lapsed into silence.

Hare suddenly realised something. "Wait. Before, when you were talking to Pierce, you were doing a weird buzz thing with your words. Why have you stopped that?"

Victoria chuckled. "Oh, I don't have to buzz my wordzzzz. I juzzzzt do it to annoy Pierzzzze," she slyly smiled, gleefully clasping her lower pair of hands together and patting her abdomen, which looked a little bigger than it had before, with one of her upper hands. "And don't tell him, or I will sting you so bad you'll wish your ass would fall off,"

Hare gulped. "Duly noted,"

~P's E~

Tyria continued to sit at the table, eating her lunch and occasionally exchanging a word with the former Phantoms, but it was clear that she didn't enjoy their company. So she was quite glad to see Blanca, with Eve in tow, show up at the entrance. The Plasticmake wizard grinned, rushing over to her. "Tyria! Great, I hoped we'd find you here!"

"Who, me? Why?" the dark-skinned wizard blinked in surprise.

"Because we wanted someone to come with us on this job," the pink-eyed wizard grinned. "I mean, I know I'm awesome enough to do it by myself, but Eve would feel better if we took a third wizard with us,"

"And you want me? Why?"

"Well, you're _you_. You're cool, you know both of us, and you're definitely not the only wizard left in town, so stop suggesting that. That's crazy-talk," Blanca 'explained'.

"Gee, thanks," Tyria raised her eyebrows in exasperation. "But sure, I'll come. What's the job?"

"Breaking the curse on an old mansion in Oreburgh," Blanca explained. "Should be a piece of cake. Let's go!" With that, she grabbed Tyria with the hand that wasn't already dragging Eve and pulled Tyria along with her, dragging her two captive comrades with her.

Totomaru and Fleur looked at each other, to gauge the other' opinion on the events they had just witnessed. "This is certainly a lively place, huh?" the fire wizard commented.

Fleur nodded empathetically.

 _~P's E~_

 _"Welcome back to DK's Ds!" Kit grinned. "Today, we're gonna be discussing my roommates, the other beings that Pierce has tamed and live inside his flute!"_

 _"You all, of course, know me, the adorable, charismatic fox yokai," he grinned, pointing to a picture of himself._

 _"Then there's Raya, the phoenix. She's Pierce's oldest friend, and she's been with him longer than anyone else, since even before he learnt Tamer magic. Unfortunately, she doesn't like to talk about her past, so I don't actually have much to say about her," Kit explained, showing a large cartoonish picture of a firebird._

 _"Crystal, the mermaid. She's a little bit unique in that, unlike most of the rest of us, she actively sought Pierce out and joined him so that she could have a life of adventure. No sad backstory, no history, just boredom. Also, you may have noticed that in spite of being a mermaid, she has legs. That's because mermaids have legs for as long as they're dry, but if they get even a splash of water on them, their legs morph back into a fish tail,"_

 _"There's already been plenty of exposition on Victoria this chapter, so I won't rehash all that. I just wish the author would tell me when he changes his designs mid-chapter," Kit frowned at a picture of a giant bee wearing a crown on the blackboard._

 _"Next on the list is Inky. But, again, you all already know how Pierce rescued and hatched a kraken egg, so I'm not going into that again," the yokai rolled his eyes._

 _"After that is Knox, the werewolf. Now, he's a little more interesting, because, like Victoria, he used to be human," Kit explained, gesturing at a diagram consisting of a bad drawing of a human and a cartoonish version of Knox with an arrow pointing from man to wolf. "In the land of Fiore, lycanthropy is a magical disease, transmitted when a werewolf bites a human. However, after that's happened, the victim will remain as a human until the next full moon, at which point they will permanently transform into a wolf. If the victim receives the cure before their transformation, then they will not transform and be permanently immune to lycanthropy. To avoid this, werewolves have learnt to only try to infect people on nights of the full moon, so that the transformation will be immediate and there will be no chance for a cure," Kit explained._

 _"Knox was one such victim. He was ganged up on, attacked, and forced into the pack. He spent a few months living this way and hating every second, until Pierce came along and provided an alternative that he leapt at. Ever since, he's been Pierce's go-to for ground transportation and battles during the night," Kit told the waiting camera._

 _"I do believe that's it! Goodnight!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **So, welcome to the Crypt's Spawn arc! (Also known as the 'what our heroes were doing while Team Natsu were off messing around at the Tower of Heaven' arc.) I am also going to be adding an intermission to this arc in which we see Tyria going on a job with Eve and Blanca, just so that I can explained on their characters a bit.**

 **That's right! Garrotte is an Exceed! Psyche! ;p**

 **Not that he knows that. This is pre-Edolas arc (another one that I'll probably have to mostly skip over, due to the lack of Dragon Slayers). Plus, there were, like, a hundred Exceed eggs sent to Earthland six years ago. It's totally reasonable that one of them ends up in Phoenix's Eye. Frankly, I'm surprised that we don't see more Exceeds in canon.**

 **Anyway, the facility that Sarph and Pierce (and Hare) are attacking is designed to be a mirror image of the one seen in canon where Ultear was taken. So imagine that, except facing left, not right.**

 **So, that's out of the way. Peace!**


	9. Who Ya Gonna Call?

Chapter 9: Who Ya Gonna Call?

"So, this is the place?" Tyria frowned, looking up at the tall, three-story mansion. It didn't look too bad, solid brown walls, white pillars rounding the outside, an ornate, angular entrance. The only issues were that no grass grew on the seemingly fertile earth for a mile around it, neither did any trees, and the roof was an ominous shade of red in the cool sunlight.

A slim lady with long, curly brown hair nodded. "That's the one. It's quite a nice property, and I would like to purchase it. But there is the small problem of the ghost,"

"G-g-ghost?" Eve echoed with a stammer.

"Yes. I can't call the police, and I can't call my friends about it, so I decided that the ones I was gonna call was a wizarding guild,"

"Don't worry, no ghost can stand up to the likes of this," Blanca smirked, tapping her chest.

Tyria noticed that she was tapping a certain part of her body, and chuckled. "What if it's a girl ghost?"

Blanca, realising her friend's meaning and unwilling to lose face, even by a joke, defended herself with "I'm willing to experiment,"

"Is there anything else we should know?" Tyria asked.

"The ghost seems to like taking the form of a woman wearing a wedding gown, with a veil covering her face," the woman explained.

"That has to mean something," Tyria frowned. "What's the history of this house? Did a bride who died before she could get married live here?"

Their employer raised her palms upwards, shrugging. "No. I've spent days researching this house's history, and nothing. The ghost just started appearing one day and making life hell for anyone who lived there. There didn't seem to be a particular reason,"

"So, a ghost who haunts a house for fun?" Blanca blinked. "That's scary," Eve weighed in.

"Come on, let's go. We won't get anywhere by standing around here," the dark-skinned wizard declared, beckoning her comrades to follow er as she strode towards the mansion. Eve frantically rushed after her. "How are we going to fight a ghost?" she asked.

Tyria thought about this for a second. "TechType: Charge Whip!" she commanded, morphing her right forearm into a silver weapon. "Ghosts are made of energy, so the only thing that can hit them is energy, right?"

Eve considered this. "Well, I can do energy," she nervously admitted, fishing a small set of objects out of her pocket. Tyria's eyes widened.

Lying in Eve's hand was a ring of metal, to which were attached four silver keys. "Those are Celestial Gate Keys," the tech wizard gasped. "I thought you were a Snow wizard?"

"Not really. I actually started out as a Celestial wizard, I just learnt Snow magic so that I could defend myself without relying on my Spirits. A nice boy in Blue Pegasus taught me it," Eve explained. "We actually bonded over having the same name . . . I'm sorry for deceiving you,"

"Aww, it's alright," Tyria shrugged, nodding reassuringly.

Eve gulped and nodded, pulling on key from the ring and throwing it into the air. As it span, end over end, she caught it, before thrusting it upwards and declaring, "Open, Gate of the North Star! Polaris!" There was a ding-dong noise, and a magic circle appeared, with a humanoid figure erupting out and landing in front of them in a perfect stance, crouched over with her right arm touching the ground in front of her and her left pointed backwards. "Good afternoon, my lady," she nodded.

Polaris was tall, with pale, white skin and long, dark hair. She wore a dark blue vest and short skirt, over a white shirt and brown leggings. Her head was clad in a massive bearskin that was tied by string around her neck and trailed behind her like a cape. "How may I assist?" she asked.

"Just stay close," Eve nervously nodded.

"Come on, Blanca!" Tyria called to their teammate as they ascended the steps leading to the manor's door.

The Plastic wizard nodded, abandoning her conversation with the client and running to catch up to them. As she did, she hummed; "If there's something strange, dun-dun, and it don't look good, dun-dun, who ya gonna call? Dun! Phoe-nixes!"

~P's E~

The mansion was large, and seemingly deserted. Dust coated every surface, causing the once-vibrant colours of the mansion's interior to take on a faded and haunted hue.

Polaris protectively stood nearby Eve, while Tyria went on ahead. "I think we should split up," Blanca suggested.

"What? No! Haven't you ever seen a horror movie lacrima? Splitting up just means we. Can be picked off one by one!" the Snow wizard moaned.

"Tell that to Tyria. If you can find her," Blanca pointed out.

Eve looked around, searching for their blue-haired teammate. "Tyria? Where did you go?" she demanded.

"I can't say I know. She is surprisingly stealthy," Polaris observed. "Also, I believe your other friend has also disappeared," she added, looking at a blinking white dotted outline where Blanca had been.

Eve whirled. "What? No! Blanca!" She inched closer to her Spirit, futilely trying to hide behind the bearskin-clad woman. "You don't think the g-g-g-ghost got them, do you?"

"No, it's more than likely that they just went to investigate on your own," Polaris reassured her mistress. "We shan't achieve anything by standing around here. I suggest that we get moving," she advised.

"But then we might also run into the ghost," Eve gulped.

Polaris sighed. All things considered, Eve was a good mistress - unlike some Celestial Wizards, she treated her spirits with respect, though she could be inconsiderate at times. But by far her greatest flaw was her shyness. It limited her, held her back, and she dearly wished that Eve could overcome it. She had, admittedly, made good strides during the fight against Phantom - or so Orion told her - but it seemed she still had strides to take. But for the time being, at least, she simply had to work within its bounds. "And if we do, I will protect you," she reassured the brown-haired girl.

Seeing that Eve was still unconvinced, she unfastened the strap of her white bearskin and removed it, before offering it to her mistress. "If you would prefer, you can wear my cloak?" she offered, and Eve gratefully donned it, letting it fall around her blue dress. "Thank you, Polaris,"

"Shall we go now?" Polaris asked, a touch impatiently.

"Okay," Eve nodded, allowing the spirit to lead her into the recesses of the manor.

~P's E~

Tyria kept a constant lookout as she investigated the house's upper floor. She walked into a large bedroom and looked around.

"That's odd," she frowned, looking at the four-poster bed, framed by white curtains all around. At least, it was supposed to be. The curtains at the foot and on the right side of the bed were intact, but the left curtain had been torn away, leaving empty brackets with patches of cloth clinging to them. "What happened there?"

~P's E~

Blanca cheerfully skipped down the hall, continuing to hum a fourth-wall-breaking tune. "An invisible man, dan dun, sleeping in your bed, dun dan, who ya gonna call? Buh-lanca! Oh yeah, I'm awesome, awesome, awesome, buh-duh-dah-lat-dad-dad! Awesome, awesome, awesome, buh-dah-lat-dad-dad!"

She paused, spotting a rolling river of mist slowly spilling down the corridor towards her. "Aww yeah! Who found the ghost first? Blanca found the ghost first! Yeah I did, oh yeah I did!"

The Plastic wizard fixed the mist with the sternest look she could muster. "Alright, ghost, if you know what's good for you you're gonna leave this building before I drag you out of it!"

The fog responded in booming, deep tones. "Turn ba-a-ack . . . Leave and never retu-u-urn,"

Blanca blinked. "Are you telling me to turn around? Nuh-uh, Blanca Pateridia never backs down from a challenge! Plasticmake shotgun!" A black plastic weapon appeared in her hand, and she fired bullets of pure magic energy out of its muzzle, each of which were absorbed by the mist to no effect.

The white cloud began to pool around her legs as a pair of glowing yellow eyes emerged in the mist. "Tu-u-urn ba-a-ack," the presence demanded.

Blanca gulped.

"Just for the record, I'm not running away!" she shouted as she pelted down the corridor in the other direction from her attacker. "This is a tactical retreat, nothing else! I'm simply, uh, making a new strategy! I'll be back!"

~P's E~

Eve and Polaris made their way into the west wing of the house. "Do you think the others are here?" Eve asked, nervously looking behind them.

Polaris paused. "I sincerely hope not, because if so, they have entered the afterlife," she frowned, a note of trepidation entering her voice.

"What?" Eve blinked, turning to look at her, and gasped.

At the end of the corridor was a floating figure, clad entirely in a white dress, with a veil entirely covering their head. The wizard and her Spirit shivered, feeling a cold gaze from behind the veil take them in.

Slowly, the ghost drifted towards them, her clothing rippling and shifting in the air. Polaris placed a reassuring hand on Eve's shoulder. "A-attack!" the Celestial wizard squeaked. Obligingly, Polaris generated a bola of crackling white energy in her hand, before expertly casting it at the ghost.

Somewhat surprisingly, it made contact, wrapping around the dress . . . but it almost immediately slid off and fell to the floor, where it winked out of existence. The Spirit blinked and cocked an eyebrow. "Strange,"

Eve was a lot less unflappable. "Run away!" she shrieked, turning and fleeing.

The ghost paused and shook, almost as if it was silently laughing. Polaris's expression darkened. "I don't appreciate you being so unkind to my mistress," she snorted, balling her fists. "Little Dipper!" she commanded, and a club that resembled the constellation in question appeared in her hand.

Eve paused at the far end of the corridor, watching her Spirit as she charged into battle.

The ghost flinched, before charging fowards itself. As it did, all manner of objects and furniture began to collect around it, paintings, shelves, old photographs and even a chest of drawers lifting into the air and swirling around it. Polaris swung her club in a mighty arc - and was promptly impeded by a nearby door that ripped itself from its hinges and blocked her attack.

A second later, a piece of heavy oaken furniture slammed into her, throwing her against the ground. Eve gasped. "Close, Gate of the North Star!" she squeaked, twisting Polaris' silver key in her hand, and the spirit vanished.

The ghost froze, objects and clutter poised in midair. The faceless shape slowly twisted to gaze at the wizard. And then, all of a sudden, it charged forwards with newfound ferocity.

Eve screamed and ran.

~P's E~

Tyria and Bianca met in what appeared to be a large ballroom. "Find anything?" they asked each other in unison. "I'll take that as a no," Tyria shook her head.

There was a piercing scream from beyond one of the doors. The two girls looked at each other in concern. "That's Eve," Blanca gulped. Tyria made for the door, but it suddenly was thrown open and the brown-haired Snow wizard pelted into the room.

She was quickly followed by what Tyria could only compare to an angry, flying yard sale. Old lamps, books, pieces of furniture and more all swerved around a floating wedding dress.

"I take it this is our ghost?" Blanca grinned.

"Let's light it up!" Tyria agreed, activating her TechType: Charge Whip. A twisting pulse of blue and orange energy flared out of the weapon, penetrating the storm and blasting a hole in the being's stomach.

Seemingly unbothered by the fact that there was now a chunk missing from its body, the ghost continued to pursue Eve. "Celestial Wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiizards are not weeeeeeeeeeelcome here!" it screeched, bringing back a floating candlestick - only to find itself being suddenly lifted into the air by a massive plastic construction. "Plasticmake Slide!" Blanca commanded. The household objects clattered to the ground in a heap as the veil-clad entity found itself slipping and sliding down a long, twisting piece of playground equipment. Tyria leapt at the chance and strung her Charge Whip across the end, and when the being slid through it, it was promptly bisected foot to head. This, however, didn't bother it either, and while one part of the cloak fell to the ground, the other rose into the air, unperturbed. "Fooooooooooolish mooooooooortals! Your physical weapoooooooooons have noooooooooooo effect on meeeeeeeeee!" it declared.

And, at this, Tyria was struck with sudden realisation.

X

Kit was being a pain and lying on top of her lunch, preventing her from eating it. Tyria attempted to shoo him off, but the yokai had shifted out of the physical plane of existence and her hand just passed through him. Finally, she transformed her arm into a pneumatic club and brought it down on him in irritation.

Unfortunately, the only product of this was that her sandwich had been obliterated, as well as a large part of the table. Kit walked away unharmed. "Hah! Your physical weapons have no effect on me!" he melodramatically cackled.

Tyria leant over to Pierce, who was watching this as though it were an everyday occurrence. "You wouldn't happen to know an exorcist, would you?"

X

Tyria gasped. "You're a yokai, aren't you?" she suddenly asked, pointing at the ghost.

It paused, turning to look at her. "What do yooooooooou speak of?"

"I know, because I have a friend who's a yokai! And you're like him, aren't you?"

"Bullshit! No yokai would ever befriend a human!" the 'ghost' protested in a voice very unlike the one it had been using up until that moment. It immediately realised its slip, and added, in the previous tone; "Uh, I mean, nooooooo yokai would eeeeeeever befriend a huuuuuuuman! Not that I would knoooooooow, because I am noooooooooooot a yoooooookai!"

"Hang on, hang on, hang on," Blanca frowned, walking towards the 'ghost'. "You're telling me that under that pile of rags, there's a little white fox like Kit?"

"No!" it squeaked. The cloth fell to the floor, revealing a (comparatively) large, blue bird, with tints of green in her feathers, a black beak, and yellow eyes, who was hovering with their wings partially outstretched and not flapping. "For one thing, I am a falcon, and don't you forget it!" it squawked in a feminine tone of voice, rounding on Blanca, before turning to Tyria. "And for another . . ." She paused, as if hit her that she had been tricked. "Oh, forget it. The jig's up," she groaned.

"So, can we consider this ghost busted?" Blanca hopefully grinned.

"Depends. Do you intend to keep haunting this house?" Tyria asked the avian yokai, who huffed. "I guess not. Now that you know what I am, all you have to do is tell the owner to find someone who specialises in killing yokais and I'd be dead in a week. Plus, I'm curious about this 'human-befriended yokai'," she admitted, still uneasy at the prospect. "So, as unappealing as the idea is, I suppose that I'm following you home,"

Tyria looked at Blanca in response to this declaration, who shrugged with a smile. "Hey. Phoenix's Eye is already the only guild in Fiore with one yokai in its ranks. If we had two, things would only get better," she grinned. "Come on, Eve, it's safe,"

"Why do Celestial Spirits and yokais hate each other, anyway?" the TechType wizard asked.

"No no no. I may be putting up with you for the time being, but that does not mean I am going to tell you anything, not even my name. So you can drop that right there," the yokai declared.

"Fine," Tyria sighed. "Well, girls, let's head home!"

~P's E~

In the part of Fiore where Pierce, Sarph and Hare were working, dusk had finally fallen.

"I azzzzume it'zzzz time for uzzzz to go?" Victoria asked, eyeing Pierce.

"Sarph?" the blond boy deferred to the de facto leader.

The S-Class Archive user squinted at the tower. Slowly, the lights were beginning to vanish from the windows. "Perfect,"

"Hop on," Victoria told her wizard, offering her broad backside, and Pierce carefully climbed onto her back, making sure that he was leaving her wings room to flap. Hare felt Sarph's broad arms wrap around her waist, and he effortlessly lifted her. "This is degrading," she snorted as Sarph's Aera activated, causing him to sprout glowing white wings. The two pairs lifted off, a high-pitched whirring filling the air as Victoria's gossamer-like wings blurred.

"Your drones are at the ready?" Pierce asked the queen bee as she hovered higher, aiming for the uppermost part of the tower.

Victoria nodded, her abdomen twitching. "I hope it won't be nezzzzezzzzary, though," Her antennae shivered, and Pierce reassuringly patted the back of her neck. "I know it's not comfortable, but there's no reason not to take advantage of what you have," he encouraged her.

Victoria nodded. "Alright," she decided, and her abdomen split open, just below the stinger.

Hare, watching this, suddenly felt like puking. That feeling only intensified as hundreds of tiny black things, which after a second she identified as normal-sized bees, poured out of the rupture, forming a shimmering black swarm around their queen and her rider.

Sarph looked down at a sudden feeling on his sandalled feet and saw a thick, pasty liquid, coloured somewhere between white, green and brown, dripping off the toes of his leather sandals. "Is that really necessary?" he sighed.

"Shut up and fly in front of them. That's just wrong," Hare retched.

Overhearing her, Victoria rolled her multifaceted eyes.

Converse to Sarph's expectations, however, there was no enemy fire. They touched down on the top of the building with minimal hassle. "That wazzzz zzzzurprizzzzingly eazzzzy," Victoria commented.

Pierce looked at her awkwardly. "I guess you should head back inside. You aren't really good at close-quarters combat,"

The queen bee nodded, and Pierce played the flute to bring her back inside the flute. Without the influence of their queen, the drones scattered in every direction.

The three wizards looked towards a door that led into the interior of the facility. "Let's go," Sarph declared.

~P's E~

"So, I have to know, how did you do that thing with the mist and the eyes?" Blanca asked. The three wizards and their newfound acquaintance were on the train, returning to Magnolia. The moonlight in the night sky shone through the compartment window.

The yokai blinked, confused. "What mist?"

"You know, when I was over in the mansion's east wing, you created a massive bank of fog with yellow eyes that came rolling towards me. How'd you do it?"

"I don't know what you're talking about. I did nothing of the sort," she defended herself.

Tyria frowned. "Wait, if you didn't do that," She and Blanca exchanged a nervous glance. "Then who did?"

There was a pause.

"You don't really think there could have been more than one ghost in that house, do you? Because that's just absurd," Blanca snorted.

 _~P's E~_

 _"Come one, come all, to Doctor Kit's Documentaries!"_

 _Kit grinned. "This time around, we'll be discussing the subject of ghosts in Earth Land,"_

 _"Historically, there have been more supposed 'ghost' sightings throughout Fiore than there have been girls squealing over how adorable I am. And that's a lot!"_

 _"No it isn't!" Pierce's voice shouted from off stage._

 _Kit glared in that general direction. "I have a life outside of you!"_

 _"Anyway. However, most of these so-called ghosts are hoaxes, the result of either dark wizards, yokais, or other such forces taking advantage of superstition to keep the general populace away from a location. For yokais, this is usually because they've found a house that they like and don't want any noisy, smelly humans interrupting them. For dark wizards, the purposes are varied, but generally much more sinister,"_

 _"However, on occasion there is a genuinely supernatural presence. These, again, are generally the restless souls of the deceased who use the ethernano in the air to affect the world of the living. But this is very unusual, and the closest thing to a genuine ghost Fiore can have,"_

 _"And again, there are more possibilities, but these are so vague, circumstantial and unlikely that Phoenix's Eye will ever actually encounter them that they're practically irrelevant, and if they are, they will be circumstantial enough that expanding on them before they might appear would be redundant. So, that's all for now! See you next time, on DK's Ds!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **It was only as I started writing this chapter that I realised how familiar the situation I had unintentionally set up was. A group of girls going to take care of a ghost as a job? One of which is black? Obviously I had to go the full mile and turn the job into a Ghostbusters parody. XD From using one of Eve's Celestial Spirits (that's true, by the way, I originally planned for her to be a Celestial Wizard. Then I realised that since Lucy had a relatively big part in the story, for a canon character, so it might not be a good idea, and gave her Snow magic instead. But now I'm just going 'screw it, I'm doing both. XD) to fill out the numbers to taking advantage of TechType to create veritable proton packs, and having a ghost who was a bride in a big dress? . . . . So Blanca ruined the effect by fighting the ghost with playground equipment, I don't care. XD**

 **Also, I COMPLETELY forgot that there was already a canon character named Eve who uses the same kind of magic and supposedly taught my Eve how to do it . . . they bonded over having the same name. That's my hasty excuse for my sloppiness. XD**


	10. A Reality of Pain

Chapter 10: A Reality of Pain

"Master Klimt, we have intruders," a subordinate reported to the head scientist, standing in the observation deck above the main lab where the test subject was.

"Do we? Where?" Klimt replied, raising an eyebrow.

"On the top floor. It appears that they flew to the roof and are making their way down the tower,"

Klimt cursed. The testing room was near the top of the tower, only five floors below the roof. It had been designed that way so that anyone who attacked from the bottom would have to work their way through the entire building to reach the lab. Unfortunately, their attackers must have realised this and intentionally done the other thing. "Call the Vanish Brothers. Tell them to engage the attackers, but not to defeat them. Instead, they are to lead the attackers into the testing chamber. Project R.D.S. could use some target practise,"

~P's E~

It was convenient that there was a central staircase running through much of the facility. Hare, using her Speed Magic, rapidly searched each floor as they passed, each time coming up empty. "It's been all sleeping quarters and storage rooms. I thought you said the interesting stuff would be near the top?" she protested, having just searched the floor fourth from the top.

The group moved down another two flights of stairs, to the fifth floor from the top. "I don't know. It could be that they anticipated that people could come in from the top and put the interesting things in the middle," Sarph shrugged.

Hare rolled her eyes, opening the door to the fifth floor - and was immediately struck in the face by a massive saucepan. She staggered backwards, and Pierce Requipped his flute and Sarph unsheathed his sword as two people appeared in the doorway.

One was bald, with red markings on his face and wearing a white robe. The other had a long, blue jacket, with white pants and five spikes of black hair. "We are the Vanish Brothers, mercenaries hired to defend this facility," they spoke in unison.

"I don't care, I'm gonna sock you good. All four of you," Hare growled, staggering forwards, off-balance. Pierce held out an arm to keep her back, while Sarph moved towards them - and suddenly, they moved back, retreating down the corridor.

The armoured man slowly followed his enemies. As he did, Archive screens flickered in front of him, and at an incredibly fast rate he read through pages' worth of information about the Vanish Brothers. Pierce carefully led Hare behind him, until she shook herself and returned to her senses. "I'm good," she growled.

"How many mercenaries are you seeing?" the Tamer asked for confirmation.

"Two. Both of which are about to get their faces kicked in," Hare growled. "As soon as they stop running away,"

"Wait. I think they're leading us into a trap," Sarph cautioned her, slowly, carefully, walking towards them, each step measured and controlled.

"Oh, pssh. 'They're leading us into a trap', I can damn well handle any trap they throw at me!" Hare declared, shooting forwards.

As if on cue, the Vanish Brothers, well, vanished into a large set of doors in the side of the corridor. Pierce started and ran after her, in Sarph's wake, as she followed.

They found themselves inside a large, two-storey room, with faded purple, almost black walls, and extremely dim lighting. A row of windows at the far end, hanging from the ceiling, betrayed the presence of an observation deck, and at the far end of the room, a shadowy figure was chained to the wall.

"I think we've found the lab," Pierce gulped.

"Is that the creature? The experiment?" Sarph asked, pointing at the figure in the shadows.

Pierce squinted. "Could be. It looks human, but that could be a cover . . maybe the experimental nature consists of the ability to transform between human and beastly forms?" he suggested.

"Or it could be that they are experimenting on human test subjects, attempting to transform them into monsters. I don't want to see another outbreak of lycanthropy," Sarph frowned.

"You two talk science and junk all you want. I'm going after the twin twats," Hare waved them off, sprinting towards the Vanish Brothers, who disappeared through another door in the side of the room.

"Should we help her?" Pierce asked, but Sarph shook his head. "No. My reasearch has uncovered that the Brothers are not wizards, they rely purely on martial arts techniques for combat. Hare should be able to defeat them as long as she doesn't do anything stupid,"

The two exchanged a look.

"We'll check on her as soon as we're done here," Sarph relented.

As if he had been waiting for the perfect moment, an unfamiliar voice boomed through the room. "Greetings, puny wizards,"

Pierce spotted a figure in the observation booth above them. "Just because we look small from there doesn't make us puny," he protested.

"I am Klimt Verdinez, chief scientist of this facility and guild master of Crypt's Spawn, a dark guild under the Oracion Seis," the figure boomed. "As I'm sure you know, we at this facility have been attempting to create a new weapon for Master Brain, and we have succeeded. Even though the power output is not quite as high as I had hoped," he muttered to himself.

"What abomination have you cooked up here?" Sarph demanded.

"Why don't you find out?" Klimt grinned, pressing a button on the control panel.

Pierce gasped as electricity surged through the chains restraining the captive, and it quaked in pain. Then, suddenly, a massive blast of grey energy issued from its mouth, aimed directly at Sarph, who frantically leapt out of the way.

As the blast cleared, Sarph shot an apologetic look at Pierce. "I'm sorry, but I think that we might have to incapacitate the being. We can't have it constantly shooting at us,"

Pierce frantically leapt out of the way of a blast himself. He frowned, noticing something, as Sarge began to move towards the creature. "Wait, don't hurt him!" he shouted. "Look, it's the chains! They've trained a stimulus-response instinct into his brain! Whenever he gets electrocuted, he fires, because he knows that the electrocution will stop when he does so!" he frantically explained.

"So, if we want him to stop, then we have to break the chains?" Sarph asked. "I see," With that, his Aera kicked in, and he leapt upwards to dive in - and was immediately caught in the chest by a blast of energy that threw him against the far wall. His armour was suddenly singed and burnt, but had protected him, as he slowly slid to the ground.

Pierce gulped, before turning back to their attacker and raising his flute. He paused, wondering who to summon, before making a decision, and playing the tune to summon Knox.

The werewolf appeared, braced for combat. "I need you to get in there and break those chains!" Pierce hastily commanded. Another blast of energy was thrown at him, and he dodged. "I'll draw the fire," he added, and Knox nodded, running around the edge of the room.

Another blast singed his hair as he frantically ducked, and he risked a look back to check on Sarph.

"There is a four-second recharge time between blasts, which last for one point seven five seconds each," Sarph rumbled. Pierce blinked in surprise. 'He counted the seconds?' he thought to himself incredulously. "Unfortunately, it would take me six point four seconds to cross the room and reach it, and you eight point two. Luckily, your wolf friend appears to be doing In in four point three, which, considering that you distracted it for one blow, should be enough,"

Even as he said this, Knox reached the captive, and bit through the chains holding their left arm. Numb, the limb slumped uselessly as he chewed through the chains on the captive's left leg, before ducking behind them and freeing the right arm. With only their right leg chained, the prisoner fell to the ground, exhausted. Knox wrapped his jaws around the final chain - and electricity surged through it, causing his body to jerk and convulse in pain. The prisoner instinctively released a blast of energy int the ground, blowing a hole directly underneath them.

It was a second later that Knox finally bit through the final chain, releasing the captive.

Releasing them to fall into the hole they had just created - so it was a good thing that the werewolf immediately grabbed the prisoner's leg and pulled them back onto stable ground.

Pierce and Sarph immediately rushed to the two's sides, crouching over him and the former prisoner.

The Tamer gritted his teeth, seeing the captive up close for the first time. "This is wrong in so many ways," he growled.

Lying, naked, on the ground beneath him, was a young human girl, barely eleven, with long, dark green hair, and singe marks around her wrists and ankles from where the chain had held her. Her eyes were open, revealing vibrant orange irises, that had no reaction to what she was seeing.

"Hello? It's okay, don't worry. We're here to get you out of here," Pierce frantically tried to reassure her, crouching over her and pressing his hands to her shoulders.

There was no response.

"God knows what they did to her in here," Sarph shook his head sorrowfully. He noticed a scar on her stomach. It didn't look like the result of abuse, it was too surgical and straight. He ran his finger over it, and felt a line of small bumps. "Take a look at this. They've implanted something under her skin,"

Pierce followed suit, and felt the line of five curved bumps. "That can't be good," he gulped.

Slowly, he craned his neck and looked up at the observation deck. A dark, furious look entered his eyes. "I won't forgive anyone who would do something like this," he growled, the tendons in his neck pulling taut. He raised his flute and played the tune to return Knox, before starting a fast-paced, furious tune. In a blaze of flame, Raya emerged, landing with dignity. Pierce immediately jumped onto her back, and the firebird took off, spiralling around the room until she was level with the control panel.

"What do you plan to do?" Klimt asked with a snort.

Raya screeched, a massive, flaming burst that blew out every window and melted the framework between them. Klimt was blown backwards, thrown against the far wall, and the phoenix shot forwards and pinned him there, wrapping a mighty claw around his neck. Pierce dismounted, and stormed up to him. "What do you have to say for yourself?" he demanded.

The scientist was scared. But a memory flashed to the front of his mind. "It's you," he breathed in shock.

Tamer and beast alike were thrown by this statement. "Pardon?"

"You're Pierce Blastreyne. Son of Jarod Blastreyne. What's someone like you doing in a legal guild?"

Pierce stared daggers at him. "You know my father?"

"Yes. We met at the last dark guilds' conference. I admire his work quite a lot," Klimt admitted.

Raya's claws tightened around his neck until he could barely breathe. "You admire that bastard?" she screeched.

"Yes. Wait, shouldn't you be with him? Preparing to take over Severed Tusk when he retires?" the scientist blinked, before his confusion cleared. "Oh, right! You're working undercover, trying to infiltrate the legal guilds as a spy! You're doing great, you really had me fooled," he grinned.

Pierce punched him in the face.

The man's head snapped back from the force of the blow. "I have two questions for you," the Tamer hissed. "Firstly, are there any other prisoners, human or otherwise, in this tower?"

"N-no," Klimt gasped, "R.D.S. is the only one,"

Pierce processed this. "R.D.S.? Is that what you call that girl?"

"Yes. Project R.D.S.. It stands for 'Reality Dragon Slayer',"

"Go on," the Tamer raised an eyebrow. He spotted Raya's impatient glare, and he gently patted her cheek. "I know you want to kill him, but this could be valuable information,"

"After the success with implanting the Poison Dragon Lacrima into test subject Cobra, which granted him use of Dragon Slayer magic and empowered him enough that he was worthy of being one of the Oracion Seis' Six Prayers, Brain decided to take it to the next step. He developed a second Dragon Lacrima and coded it with a kind of Lost Magic; the Arc of Space. The idea was that whoever was implanted with that lacrima would be capable of using a specialised artificial variation of Dragon Slayer Magic, focused around bending reality," the Crypt's Spawn guild master gasped.

"So you kidnapped an innocent girl and made her your test subject?" Pierce frowned.

"Her town was completely destroyed, and she was the only survivor. She should be thanking us," Klimt spluttered. "Though, we were the ones who destroyed it in the first place," he admitted.

Raya's black eyes bored into the captive, and he shivered. "Are we done with him?" she hissed.

"Nearly. Alright, second question. How do you want to die? You can currently choose between being strangled, burnt alive, having your heart ripped out or all of the above," Pierce savagely growled.

Klimt paled. Suddenly, his eyes rolled back in his head as there was a snap and his body went lifeless. Pierce fixed Raya with an irritated glare. "You broke his neck?" he frowned.

"Like he didn't deserve it," the phoenix snorted.

"Of course he did. He deserved worse! You could have at least set him on fire," Pierce huffed.

"But then we wouldn't be the better people," Raya gently reminded him. "You should know, normally you're the one reining me in,"

"She's right," Sarph's voice came from behind him. "That's something you need to work on, Pierce. One mention of your father and you fly into a blind rage," he frowned disapprovingly.

Raya wrapped a reassuring wing around him, and pressed her beak onto his scalp, gently nuzzling it. Pierce leant into the contact, enjoying the familiar feel of her rugged, scratchy feathers. "There's no one else we need to rescue in here. We should get Hare and leave," he told Sarph after a few moments of calming down.

The S-Class nodded, frowning to himself. "I wonder how she's doing against those two mercenaries?"

~P's E~

"We are the Vanish Brothers! Observe our Destruction of Heaven and Earth technique!" the two declared, one unsheathing his giant saucepan and the other jumping to perch on the weapon.

Unfortunately, his feet never touched the surface, as Hare slammed into him in mid-air and sent him sprawling. "Do you honestly expect me to stand around and wait while you set up your attack?" She snorted as the hairy brother crashed. Having done that, she used both hands to pull the weapon out of her bald opponent's clutches, before, in a blur, she brought it down on his head and slammed him into the floor. In the corner of her eye, the kimono-clad Speed Wizard noticed the second brother getting back up, and, swinging the pan like a cricket bat, she slammed its surface into him, throwing him into the wall.

Hare hefted the oversized kitchen utensil. "I could get used to this," she grinned.

~P's E~

Pierce and Sarph, who was carrying the rescued prisoner over his shoulder, entered the room where Hare had been fighting the mercenaries, to find their colleague carelessly doing her nails while sitting on a giant pan, which was pressed like a lid over the bodies of her unconscious opponents. "Oh? What took you?" she snidely simpered.

"Of course she's alright," Pierce sighed.

"Let's go," Sarph declared as Hare stood up. "If there's no more prisoners, we have no more reason to be here. With their leader dead, this place will collapse,"

"Hold on," Hare cautioned the other two. They looked at her as she picked up the giant saucepan and brought it down on the Vanish Brothers one more time, before swinging it over her shoulder and moving to join them. "I'm ready to go," she smiled.

"Do I want to know what you plan to do with that?" Pierce sweatdropped.

"No," Hare snorted in amusement as they walked back to the stairs.

"I think we should return to our camp and sleep there for the night. We will return home in the morning," the armoured wizard suggested.

"Wait, we have a camp? How much did I miss?" Hare blinked.

"He means the little hill where we were waiting earlier," Pierce supplied, and Hare nodded. "Oh, okay. Let's go,"

"So, what are we doing with her?" the Tamer asked, looking at their rescuee.

"What choice do we have? We might as well take her home," Sarph shrugged. "Phoenix's Eye is as good a place for her to be as any,"

~P's E~

Raya, carrying Pierce and the girl they had rescued, carefully lifted off. Pierce started as a tiny gasp came from the girl's mouth. "What is it?" he gently asked.

She didn't respond, but he saw the light of the night stars reflected in her formerly empty eyes, and realised what she was looking at. "It's the stars, isn't it? How long has it been since you've seen them?" he gently asked.

The freed captive didn't respond, which wasn't entirely unexpected. "A long time, huh?" Pierce cocked his head sympathetically. He gently patted her grass green hair. "Well, don't worry. From now on, you can see the stars every night. But trust me, this is nothing. Daylight is where it's at,"

Ever so slightly, she nodded, eyes still glistening with the light of the stars above.

As they flew, on one of the grassy knells a man whose body was draped in white cloth, obscuring all of his features except his chin, which was covered in blond stubble, and his bright blue eyes, observed. "A profitable gambit, Phoenix's Eye. How will you use the power you have acquired?" he wondered.

~P's E~

The next day, after a long train ride, the four people returned to Phoenix's Eye. The girl had been persuaded to walk on her own feet, but she continued to stare with the same glassy expression she had worn since they had rescued her.

Interestingly enough, she had picked up a habit of walking just a few steps behind Pierce, and whenever Sarph or Hare tried to pull her away, she wouldn't resist, but as soon as she was let go, she would slowly move back to her position right behind Pierce.

So it was in this way that they returned to the Phoenix's Eye guild hall. Tyria waved hello, but paused when she noticed the young girl trailing behind Pierce.

Master Feng, who always took an interest when one of her little brats turned up with someone new in tow, swooped down from the upper floor and stood in front of the returning group. "So, who's this?" she asked, looking at the green-haired, orange-eyed little girl with her pale skin and the clothes they had purchased for her at the first clothes shop they could find.

"This is the so-called 'monster' that the dark guild was trying to create," Pierce succinctly explained.

Feng eyed the girl, with her glassy stare, critically. "She isn't about to turn into a raving beast, is she?"

"No!" the Tamer shouted, placing a protective hand on her shoulder.

The guild master saw this, and saw the way that the girl, ever so slightly, leant into the contact. "I see," she raised an eyebrow. "Come with me, both of you,"

She turned on her heel and strode off towards her quarters in the guild hall's tower, and, with a moment's pause, Pierce followed her, as she went up the stairs, past the S-Class job board and through the doors that lead into her rooms.

It was against the rules for wizards to enter the master's rooms, at least, without permission. "I haven't been here since I first joined the guild," Pierce recalled as he entered through the oaken doors.

Feng chuckled. "Yes, I remember that. A half-starved seven-year-old walking into the guild hall with a baby phoenix perched on his shoulder. I didn't know what to make of you,"

"I was almost eight," the blond snorted. "But, yeah. Heh, seven years, huh? Been a long time, and yet it feels like it passed so quickly," Pierce nodded, shrugging.

"But back to the matter at hand. I am going to try to read this girl's memories. That may well be the answer to breaking her silence, and, if nothing else, should tell us her name," Master Feng explained.

Kit materialised on Pierce's shoulder - prompting his Tamer to flinch away and drop him, as usual. "Can I help?" he asked from the floor, unperturbed.

"No. I understand that it is possible, but yokai possession is far too dangerous to try on a damaged young girl like this. I won't allow it," she shook her head, grey hair shaking as she did. With that, Feng placed a hand on the girl's forehead and closed her eyes. Bright orange fire licked around her wrist, and wrapped around the girl's green-haired head, not burning, but pressing a caring warmth into her skin.

This continued for some ten minutes, and Pierce decided to take a seat while he waited, activating and browsing the settings screen of his Requip magic. "I should definitely buy that sword sometime," he mused.

"At the rate you're going, pigs are gonna fly before you actually do that," Kit snorted.

"They have. Remember that job where someone cursed a farm with gravity negation magic?" the Tamer asked, smiling.

"Yeah. You stood around uselessly while Sarph did all the work. No wonder he made S-Class and you didn't," the fox smirked.

"I caught the falling pigs!" Pierce protested. "It's more than you did!

Their conversation continued in this manner until Feng finally released the girl, who staggered backwards, suddenly breathing heavily. Her orange eyes widened, taking in the rom wiht new eyes, and she hit the wall, bracing herself against it. Feng moved towards her, a hand outstretched reassuringly, but then she caught sight of Pierce. In an instant, she dashed over to his chair and attempted to hide behind him. Feng paused, surprised, but Pierce knew what to do. He stood up and looked down at her, before crouching, putting himself on her level. "Hey, hey," he said in a soothing tone of voice. "It's alright, it's alright,"

The girl moved forwards with surprising speed, tucking herself into his chest and clinging to his waist. Pierce looked down in surprise, but gently patted her back.

"You always were good with frightened creatures," Feng nodded. "The things they did to her, the entire reality of pain they put her through in that place . . that filthy, disgusting facility," she seethed. "I managed to cloud her memories of her experiences. She remembers, but they're behind a pane of glass, so to speak, so they won't bother her as much as they would otherwise. Her name is Grace Hystia. Take care of her," the guild master commanded.

"You got it, master," Pierce agreed. He looked down at the pale-skinned girl, whose wide, innocent orange eyes blinked up at him. "So, Grace. How would you like to join a wizard's guild?"

In response, Grace mumbled something. "Sorry? I didn't quite catch that," the blond boy admitted.

"What's that?" the girl repeated in a slightly louder, but still quiet and timid, voice.

Pierce grinned and chuckled. "Well, I dunno about other guilds, but this one, Phoenix's Eye? Well, it's kind of like a really big family,"

"That sounds nice," Grace meekly nodded.

"Well, come on then. Let's go meet the family,"

"Pierce? One more thing," Feng called as he made to leave, Grace and Kit in tow. "Yeah, master?" the Tamer paused, looking back.

"I take it you remember Natsu Dragneel, of Fairy Tail? And, more to the point, the Dragon Slayer Magic he used?" she asked.

"Yeah. Who could forget?" Pierce nodded.

"If half the stories I've heard about that boy's memory are true, he probably could," Feng wryly commented. "But regardless. The scientists at the facility were developing a special kind of lacrima that, if a person was implanted with it, would allow them to use Dragon Slayer magic in the same way. Albeit of a different element, of course. It appears that Grace was the test subject for this lacrima,"

"The guy at the facility was saying the same thing," Pierce recalled, frowning. "That scar on her stomach - you're saying there's a lacrima inside her body?"

"No. There's actually a total of six lacrima inside her body. The Dragon Slayer lacrima is inside her chest, quite close to her heart. Close enough that there's no way it could be safely removed without killing her, which I suppose was the intention. Then there's another five, smaller lacrima that are in her stomach, which I believe are designed to help her control her power. These could be removed, but they are all that prevents her from losing control of her powers, so I believe that for her own safety, and everyone else's, they should be retained," Feng explained.

Pierce was stunned. 'Six lacrima inside her body . . one of which gives her the ability to use Lost Magic? That's insane,' he thought.

He felt a tug on his sleeve, and looked down to see Grace looking up at him. "What does that mean?" she cluelessly, quietly asked.

"It means that you could be a very powerful wizard, if you wanted," Pierce grinned.

A wide smile crossed her face. "That sounds fun!"

With that, Pierce guided her out of Feng's quarters, taking her to get the Phoenix's Eye crest of a bird's eye framed by feathers stamped on her skin, and to introduce the rest of the guild to their newest member.

And, as soon as she was certain that they were out of hearing range, Feng whooped. "Hah! Take that, Maky! Your guild ain't the only guild in Magnolia with a Dragon Slayer anymore! Fairy Tail wins never, Phoenix's Eye forever!"

 _~P's E~_

 _"And welcome back to DK's Ds on P's E!" Kit smirked._

 _"Today, we'll be engaging in a very prudent topic to discuss; lacrimas!"_

 _"Lacrima are crystalline objects of a myriad of shapes and sizes. They can also be different colours, though colour is usually determined by the kind of magic that they contain. A red lacrima probably contains fire magic or something else that would cause it to be red, earth magic would make a lacrima brown, and lacrimas that don't have any kind of magic are generally pale blue or white,"_

 _"Lacrimas have a variety of uses, for example the lacrima within Pierce's flute. It uses his magic power to shrink beings to tiny proportions and suck them into a tiny pocket of space, where they can live until he needs to call them out. On the other hand, Grace's dragon lacrima acts as an amplifying lens, which boosts and focuses her magic power, changing it from its natural, raw state into Dragon Slayer magic, like a magnifying glass turning sunlight into a laser,"_

 _"There's a lot of potential uses for lacrima, such as cameras, batteries, and the Satellite Square: Etherion is controlled via a lacrima up in space. Really, the only thing lacrimas can't feasibly do is think, and even that might be possible with some Lost Magic techniques,"_

 _"I think that's it! See you next time!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **Whaddya know, we finally find out what Pierce's surname is. Pierce Blastreyne. (I've been looking for a good place to slip that in for ten chapters - come to think of it, we still don't know what Hare's surname, or even Boomer's first name is - I definitely need to do more exposition on Boomer's character, that's for sure. I'll probably slide that in between the Battle of Fairy Tail and Oracion Seis arcs [and you can bet Phoenix's Eye will get involved there].)**

 **And finally, finally! The entire main cast is here! Pierce (and Kit), Tyria, Boomer, Hare, Sarph, and Grace! (And it does not take a genius to figure out that Grace is the Phoenix's Eye equivalent to Wendy).**

 **But the Crypt's Spawn arc isn't over yet! Still one more chapter before the Battle of Fairy Tail starts.**

 **Also, it's come to my attention that Kit forgot to mention Brakodidon the cerberus during DK's Ds on P's E in Chapter 8. That has now been rectified.**

 **Anyways, peace!**


	11. The Broken-Off Part of the Severed Tusk

Chapter 11: The Broken-Off Part Of The Severed Tusk

Grace danced around the guild hall in excitement. It was so big, and colourful, and there were so many smiling faces! It was kind of scary how many people they were, but the way that every single one lit up with a smile when they saw her was boosting her self-confidence immensely. She kept touching the bare skin in her thigh, where a newly printed Phoenix's Eye emblem in bright red was now tattooed, unable to believe it.

"Hi! I'm Grace!" she grinned at the brown-haired girl she was currently facing, who was sitting next to a clearly drunk lady with dark skin and matching hair.

"Uh, I'm Eve, and this is Kana. Hi," Eve meekly nodded.

"Say hello, Kana," Blanca commanded from the other side of the alcoholic's seat. Kana, her eyes wide and unfocused, turned and squinted blearily at Grace. "Hello, grassy lady,"

"Uh, hi?" the green-haired girl nervously waved, stepping back.

"Hey, I don't suppose you've seen that yokai that followed us home yesterday?" Blanca frowned at Eve, who shook her head. "Nope. She just kind of vanished as soon as we reentered Magnolia," she recalled in slight confusion.

"Weird," Blanca frowned.

"Well, you look chipper," a new voice interrupted as Grace sat on a stool at the bar, next to Eve.

Grace took in the man who was talking to her from a couple of seats down, from his brown boots and black pants, to his red jacket that left his toned chest bare, up to his messy brown hair, wide, full lips turned upwards in a friendly smirk, and his mismatched eyes - one was green, the other pale white and probably non-functional. "I haven't seen you before. New?"

"Uh, yeah," Grace nodded. "Who're you?"

"Name's Garred. Always a pleasure to see new faces at the bar," the man shook a hand that was clenched around a mug of beer in the general impression of a wave, before tipping his head backwards and draining it. Flecks flew in every direction, and one landed on Grace's cheek. She awkwardly wiped it off.

"Now now, Garred. I hope you aren't trying to convince our newest recruit to take up alcoholism at her young age," Sarah admonished him.

"Wouldn't dream of it," the man shook his head. He stood up, snatching a faded leather fedora from the bar table and donning it. "Well, maybe I'll see you around. Take care, kid," With that's he walked away,

"Don't mind him," Sarah sweetly smiled. "Garred's usually a little distant. Especially with children. He's a good person to have around, though, even if I wish he'd lay off the alcohol a bit more," she admitted.

"He seems nice," Grace smiled, before leaving the stool and dashing off. "I wanna meet everyone!"

Tyria watched this from her seat at end and Pierce's usual table. Sarph was sitting with them, keeping an eye on Pierce, who seemed more distant than usual. "Did something happen on the mission?" she asked Sarph.

"You could say that. Pierce had an uncomfortable run-in with his past," Sarph gravely replied.

"His past? Is there something I don't know?" Tyria frowned, peering at her friend.

Sarph paused, uncertain. "It isn't my story to tell, and I honestly don't know all of it," he replied.

"It's fine. Half the guild knows, she would have found out sooner or later anyway. Tell her what you know, and I'll fill in the blanks," Pierce sighed, looking up with an exhausted countenance.

"Well, his full name is Pierce Blastreyne, and his father is Jarod Blastreyne," Sarph started.

Tyria stared at him blankly. "Should that mean something to me?" she asked after a moment.

"If you were born in Fiore, especially in the north-east, you would know that Jarod Blastreyne is the guild master of the dark guild Severed Tusk. They hunt endangered and fantastic creatures, so that they can sell their body parts on the black market. Technically, they work under the Oracion Och, but that's only as a formality. They're about as independent as a dark guild can be, and they take any means necessary to make sure that they retain that status," Sarph explained.

"They were - are - the guys to go to if you wanted any quasi-legal animal product. Basilisk eyes? By the bucketful. Unicorn horns? Intact, powdered, or dried. Phoenix feathers?" A particularly dark look crossed Pierce's countenance. "Freshly plucked," he spat.

Tyria gulped. Behind them, Grace continued to whizz around the guild, introducing herself to anyone and everyone.

"That's . . hard to imagine," she said, trying and failing to resolve Pierce, who she knew would put his life on the line for any living creature without a second's hesitation, with this father who hunted, killed and sold the body parts of anything he could come across.

"I know, right? I didn't believe it myself at first," Sarph chuckled.

"It's no laughing matter," Pierce frowned. "Anyway, that was my father. And that was where I was born, surrounded by beasts in cages,"

~P's E~

Five years old, Pierce clung to his father's trailing sleeve as Jarod guided him through a maze of cages big and small.

Jarod Blastreyne was a big man. Tall, with well-defined, tanned muscles, and a large, black coat slung over his shoulders. A leather belt pockmarked with pockets and pouches wrapped around his waist, over his brown shirt and sandy khaki pants. A helmet crowned his head, with leather goggles strapped to it, with strands of blonde hair trailing out. A large rifle was slung over his back, with the butt protruding above his left shoulder. The Severed Tusk guild mark; a curved elephant tusk that had been snapped in two, and the pieces falling apart, was printed in black on his cheek.

Pierce eyed it, before looking at his wrist, where an identical mark in dark blue was tattooed.

"You see all this, son?" Jarod maleficiently grinned. "This is the livelihood of Severed Tusk. This is my life's work, and someday, it'll all be yours,"

"I'm supposed to take care of all these animals?" Pierce asked in surprise.

His father laughed. "Take care? No no no, you don't want to take care of them. You want them alive, to make us money,"

Pierce nodded. "Okay," he filed the information away.

A subordinate, a fat, bald wizard named Kroeber, came running up. Kroeber wasn't a hunter, he didn't chase across the land after fleeing prey. He was a trapper, who laid snares and traps in palaces he knew his prey would come to, and waited. As such, he always carried an entire pack of traps and tools. Kroeber nodded in greeting. "Master Jarod," Spotting the five-year-old, he turned and nodded again. "Master Pierce. Our scouts have discovered a grazing ground of flowers which we believe is being frequented by blizzardverns," he quickly reported.

"Blizzardverns, eh? Their scales go for tens of thousands of jewels," A greedy glint appeared in his eye. "Tell the men to get ready. We're going blizzardvern hunting,"

"Can I come?" Pierce eagerly asked.

Jared looked down at him in surprise, before smiling a wicked grin. "You think you can handle it? Then by all means. Kroeber, take my son and get him suited up," he commanded.

"Yes sir!" Kroeber nodded, looking down at young Pierce. "Come on, son, we're going to get you suited up,"

"Yay!"

~P's E~

Pierce shifted yet again. The suit that Kroeber had given him was way too big, and it was itchy. And they'd been lying in a smelly ditch for an hour now.

"How much longer?" he quietly whined to his father, who was lying next to him.

Jarod could have just sent his subordinates to hunt the blizzardverns. Most guild masters did such things, and on occasion, he did. But Jarod Blastreyne lived for the thrill of the hunt. He would accompany his men on as many hunts, stake-outs, and trapping runs as possible, his trusty magic rifle always by his side. Pierce knew a story that went around the men; every time Jared shot and killed a beast, he carved a nick into the barrel of his gun in triumph.

Pierce knew the story wasn't true, at least not any more. His father had stopped when he ran out of room on his gun.

His father heavily tapped him on the shoulder. "Keep quiet," he hissed. "We don't want the blizzardverns to know we're here,"

"But they aren't here either," Pierce complained, gesturing to the wide, empty field of flowers.

"And they won't be if they hear you whining. It'll warn them that there might be trouble," he hissed.

Pierce, mollified, settled back down and tried to be quiet. "Is there trouble?" he whispered a question.

Jared patted his gun. "For them," he cruelly grinned.

As if on cue, it was right then that a blizzardvern, a massive, majestic creature, snow-white and icy blue, came swooping down out of the sky for a snack on her favourite food; the flowers in the meadow. Pierce's eyes widened. She was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, a sleek body with glistening scales that reflected the sunlight with a dazzling gleam. He would never forget that moment.

And he would also never forget the way she fell to the ground in an undignified heap, blood spurting from a hole in her neck, when his father shot her out of the sky.

"Good shot, sir!" Kroeber declared, breaking cover and springing over to the corpse. Their men followed, spreading out a large net that they would use to carry the body back to their camp for skinning.

"You see that, boy?" Jared grinned, looking at his son. "That's the soul of Severed Tusk. The hunt, and the kill,"

But to Pierce, watching crimson blood stain the pristine white scales, it seemed so horrifically wasteful.

~P's E~

A year and a half later, and Jared had begun training him in how to handle a gun. How to clean them, reload them, and how to fire them. It had been his birthday just yesterday, and his father, a beaming smile on his face, had presented him with a gift-wrapped rifle of his very own. Children's size.

And today, he was practising with it. Targets had been set up across an expanse of wilderness, and with pinpoint precision he blasted holes in each of them. After a couple of hours of this, his father nodded his approval. "Very good, Pierce. You're a natural sharpshooter. They'll start calling you Deadeye Pierce by you're fifteen,"

Young Pierce grinned, delighted at his father's praise.

"Now then, I think it's time for your initiation," Jared smiled coolly, before turning and beckoning a couple of his subordinates. Pierce was confused. What initiation?

His answer came when a couple of lackeys wheeled in a wooden trolley. Strapped to it, was a live, adolescent basilisk. Cloth had been tied around its eyes to prevent it petrifying anyone, and its yellow flanks were heaving strangled breaths laced with fear.

"Now, I presume you recall where a basilisk's heart is?" Jared asked.

"It's in the exact centre of its body, and there's too many bones in the way of getting a clean shot. Your best chance to inflict a fatal blow is to go for the throat," Pierce reiterated from memory. It was a common question that his father asked him when he was studying the art of hunting. The question of the basilisk's heart was something that killed many novice hunters.

"Good. Well? Go ahead," Jared invited him, gesturing st the defenceless beast.

"Uh, with what?" Seven-year-old Pierce nervously asked, hoping against hope that his father wasn't saying what he thought he was saying.

"Your proper initiation into Severed Tusk. Go on. Kill it," Jared encouraged him.

His hands shaking with nerves, he picked his gun back up and reloaded, aiming the quivering barrel at the creature's threat. Somehow sensing the situation, the basilisk redoubled its efforts to get free, sending convulsions running down its spine and through its tightly restrained wings.

Pierce tried to slow his breathing, attempting to hold the barrel steady. But the enormity of what he was doing was inescapable, it swallowed his senses, wreaking havoc on his nerves.

He stepped back. "I can't do it," he breathed. "I'm sorry, dad,"

Jared' smile vanished. "Why not?" he frowned.

"Why does he have to die?" Pierce asked, blinking back tears.

"So that we can take him apart and sell the pieces. We've been through this," Jared growled.

"But why'd we have to be the ones to kill innocent creatures?"

His father looked at him with disappointment in his eyes. Raising his own gun, he pushed his son aside and levelled it at the basilisk's threat. With a magic circle momentarily appearing at the weapon's mouth, fired.

The beast collapsed, dead.

"I'm very disappointed in you, son. Go to your room," Jared commanded.

"But why did you -"

"I said, go to your room!" the man thundered, a story expression in his eyes.

Pierce turned and ran. But he didn't go straight back to the oversized caravan that his father called a house. Instead, when he passed a row of cages, he heard angry, indignant squawks. Crouching near a cage that contained an unconscious chimera,he peered through the bars and saw a large, crimson bird crouched protectively over a pile of eggs within a cage that was far too small for her on the other side of the adjacent aisle. Three men were standing nearby, looking at her in irritation. "Give it up, you know you can't win," one of them indignantly shouted.

"This my brood," the bird shrieked in guttural, broken Earthlish. "You take no more my eggs!"

Pierce inched closer through a gap between cages. Too close. If one of his father's lackeys turned around, they would see him. Though, being son of their leader, he wasn't likely to be in much danger.

The three men looked at each other, and shrugged. "Y'now, she's getting pretty old, and a few of her earlier children are just about old enough to breed. What say we save on clean-up a little?" one suggested.

With a grin, the second raised his gun. Pierce looked away as a crack echoed through the air, and when he looked back, the elderly phoenix had fallen against the wall of her cage, dead.

"Tell the strippers that they have a new subject. Let's get these eggs over to the nursery batteries," the first declared, swinging open the door. He scooped up the seven eggs in both arms, before turning around - and spotting Pierce. "Hey, boys, look. It's ol' Jarod's kid!" He grinned. "Pierce, right? Come on over, boy, give us a hand!"

Obediently, knowing he had little choice, Pierce rose form his hiding place and crossed the aisle to them. "You two get her to the strippers. Me and the boy'll take the eggs down to the nursery," he declared, handing Pierce three of the ovongular, speckled eggs. He took them with more than a little trepidation, as the other two lackeys crawled into the cage and hauled the dead mother out. The leader was already striding away at a pace. "Come on, kid!" he commanded over his shoulder. Pierce scrambled to catch up, clutching his three eggs.

Fifteen minutes later, the blond seven-year-old still trailing behind the older man, they arrived at the nursery. "Fresh batch of phoenix eggs?" the scrawny woman asked, eyes lighting up with recognition at the sight of the eggs.

"You know it, Bethel. How close are those first-batchers to breeding age?" the man asked, depositing the eggs in a small basket.

"Just a couple of months now, Barry. Say, that's Jared's son there, isn't it?" Bethel smiled.

"Yep. Found him nearby, and he wanted to help out," Barry shrugged with a smile as Pierce deposited both of the eggs he was carrying into the basket.

"I should, uh, get home. Dad'll be waiting for me," Pierce hastily made his excuses and ran off. The two watched him go. "Someday, that kid'll be in charge of the both of us," Barry reflected.

"Don't talk like that. You'll make me feel old," Bethel snorted, cuffing him on the shoulder.

Barry looked over at her in indignation, and in doing so, spotted the basket she was carrying and the six eggs it contained. "Huh. I thought there were more than that," he frowned, but shrugged. "Eh. I guess I really am getting old," he chuckled, before turning and leaving.

As Pierce scurried back to his father's caravan, he felt inside his pants, where he had stuffed one of the eggs that he had been carrying while Barry's back was turned. He didn't know why he had done that. It was a reckless, impulsive choice that was bound to get him in trouble later. And he didn't even know what he planned to do with the egg. But something within him knew that it was better off with him than in the so-called nursery.

~P's E~

Pierce knew nothing about eggs other than that you shouldn't break them. And, with his seven-year-old lack of common sense and knowledge, it was a wonder that the egg hatched at all. But, hatch it did, two months after he rescued it. During that time, Jared continued to train him, hoping fruitlessly to persuade his reluctant son to take the life of a captive beast. But he wouldn't, no matter what he tried.

Unsure what a baby bird would eat, the seven-year-old spied on the nursery to find out that they could consume a kind of birdseed, which he promptly began stealing pocketfuls of. The baby phoenix, who he had named Raya, was kept in his room, and he taught her to hide whenever she smelt someone approaching. She was a fast learner, which was lucky for both of them. Another six months passed in this fashion; Pierce putting up with his father's continued attempts to make him kill a beast but constantly refusing, and all the while helping out in the nursery in order to sneak handfuls of bird feed to Raya back in his room.

So it was that, four months away from his eighth birthday, his father had finally had enough. Pierce got his first inkling of this when, instead of the usual route to the training grounds near Severed Tusk's camp, his father took him out further, into the middle of the forest.

"Why are we out here, dad?" Pierce asked, seconds before they came upon a large, metal fence.

"I've had Motormouth," Motormouth was one of Jared's subordinates, notable for his use of Metal Maker magic. He was responsible for creating all the raw metal that the hunters used, for cages, traps, and weapons alike. "create a circular enclosure, one kilometer in diameter. This gate is the only way in or out, and inside the enclosure is a half-starved chimera," he emotionlessly explained. "You are going to go inside, and either you com out with that monster's head under your arm," he paused, no hint of a smile in his features, "or you don't come out at all,"

"Wha - but why, dad?" Pierce complained.

"Because it's been eight months, and no matter how simple I make it, you just refuse to kill a monster!" Jared exploded in fury. "So, I've decided to reduce the situation to its most basic. Kill or be killed," he explained, seething. "You have your gun, and you know how to use it. Get in!" he commanded, pulling the gate open.

Pierce didn't move, scared.

His father, impatient, picked him up by the back of his shirt and bodily threw him into the enclosure. Before Pierce could even stand up, he swung the gate closed again and locked it. "I'll be waiting. Don't disappoint me again," he ominously intoned.

The seven-year-old frantically unslung his gun from his back, cocking it and holding it in the ready position. One last, plaintive look at his father confirmed that there would be no pity, no reprieve, so, nervous and scared, he set off into the undergrowth.

It was a terrifying experience. Every twitch in the corner of his eye was a monster rearing up to attack him, every noise his only chance to spin around before he was mauled from behind. The experience played his nerves like a piano, an unending, inescapable symphony of horror.

A thought struck him, and he ran back towards the perimeter, just far enough from the gate to make sure his father wouldn't see him. If he kept his back to the fence, then he wouldn't have to worry about being caught from behind.

His gun felt cold and heavy in his hands, a weight that he feared would never leave him if he were to pull its trigger, even in self-defence.

Making his way along the perimeter of the fence, Pierce froze, having just passed a grove of trees when he heard a low, rumbling growl. "H-hello?" he called, looking around frantically and pressing his back to the fence.

A bush or his right exploded, a massive, grey form leaping out of it. With a scream, Pierce ducked and rolled away, and the chimera threw itself into the metal fence. It bounced off, landing on its feet expertly, and turned to look at Pierce, who had flattened himself against the bark of a tree.

The chimera was old and had obviously been a reject of his father's taxidermy crew, a.k.a. the strippers. Silver-grey fur ran down its flanks, the goat's head had its horns missing and an ugly scar ran over the lion head's left eye, which it kept closed. The serpentine tail spat at him with toothless gums, and the lion part roared.

Pierce leapt aside, into the copse of trees. as the chimera charged again, slamming bodily into the tree. It cracked and parts of it fell away, leaving a battered husk of wood as Pierce, moving to the other end of the copse, kept nervous eyes on him and tried to raise his gun.

With a bestial roar, the chimera charged once more, and, frantically, Pierce rolled again, this time to the right, as it once again crashed into a nearby tree. This tree, though, happened to be home to a rabbit's warren beneath it, and thus its roots were weaker than its comrade's. Weak enough that, when the monster slammed into it, they lost their purchase, sending the mighty oak tumbling backwards. Backwards into the wiry top of the fence, which was no match for momentum and gravity in unison bringing down twenty tons of wood on its back. The fence collapsed, the trunk carving a V-shaped hole in it.

The chimera paused, seeing this unexpected new avenue for escape. The hornless goat head turned to look at him, as if appraising him, until the chimera caught a familiar scent.

The sweaty perspiration that it had long come to associate with its abusers in Severed Tusk. And, for the first time in more years than it cared to remember, it was free to do with them as it willed.

Its mind made up, the chimera leapt through the gap, bounding towards the scents emanating through the forest from the camp. And, as Pierce watched it go, he knew that with it went his final chance to prove himself in his father's eyes. What was it that he said? Kill or be killed. Pierce hadn't made a kill, and he knew that, as long as he lived, he never would. Which left only one option.

And as he considered the 'be killed' option, it suddenly hit him the opportunity he had. He could fake his death and leave! A few rags of clothing and everyone would assume that the chimera had eaten him. He could sneak back into his room, get his things and Raya and sneak away.

But could he? Could he leave his father, leave Severed Tusk, and with it everything he had ever known?

He considered it for a second, but there was really no choice. Sure, he had the guild mark on his wrist, but he wasn't really a member. And he never would be as long as he couldn't kill a beast. Running away was his only option. So he tore a few rags off his shirt and dropped them on the floor nearby, before regarding his gun.

He braced it over his knee and snapped it in two, and in that moment, promised himself that never again would he wield a weapon like that. With that, Pierce ran towards the part of camp where he knew his dad's caravan was. The men would all be occupied taking care of the chimera, and his father would still be waiting at the gates. He had a clear run to freedom, and he took it.

~P's E~

A week and a half later, Pierce, starving, stumbled into a nearby town, Raya perched on his shoulder. He collapsed, utterly exhausted. Since leaving camp, he had barely eaten, and he knew he couldn't go on like this.

It was a few minutes later that a younger Russell, who had just finished a job in this town and was on his way home, found a young boy with a mop of blonde hair lying unconscious on the ground, and, strangely, an infant phoenix crouching over him and desperately trying to wake him up.

Russell eyed the phoenix chick, touching the spot on his shoulder where, underneath his shirt, the Phoenix's Eye emblem rested in white ink. Interesting coincidence, he mused. Either way, the boy looked like he was in trouble. And Phoenix's Eye could probably use a mascot, he smiled. With that, he strode over to the boy and carefully lifted him. At first, the chick made a fuss, but he managed to convince her that he was friendly.

"I wonder how the guys will feel about the fact that I'm bringing a kid home?" Russell chuckled, continuing to make his way towards the train station.

~P's E~

"And he brought me here, and that was that," Pierce finished the story.

"Wow, I . . had no idea," Tyria nodded, digesting her friend's past.

"Master Feng arranged for me to learn Beast Tamer magic so that I could work together with Raya and take on jobs. And, one by one, I tamed more beasts until I have the ones you know," he finished, before standing up. "And Sarph's right. I'm not going to get over it by pushing it to the back of my mind. I need closure. I need to see Severed Tusk wiped out," he growled, turning to leave. Tyria started, but Sarph held her back. "Wait. Give it a second," he smiled knowingly. "He gets like this whenever his father comes up,"

Pierce was only a foot away from the door, gripping his flute tightly in one hand, when he felt a tug on the back of his shirt. Pausing, he turned, and saw Grace looking up at him. "Where are you going, Mr. Pierce?" she asked, looking up at him in slight worry.

"There's something I need to do," he frowned, shaking his head.

"But why?" Grace asked. "Everything we need is right here. Isn't that what you said?"

The Tamer looked at her in surprise. Then, he looked up, and took in the entire guild hall. The smiling and laughing faces, the warm, friendly atmosphere. The crowd around the request board, and the bigger crowd that Sarah was catering to at the bar. Tyria and Sarph watching him from their table, and, above them, the massive white banner bearing the Phoenix's Eye logo in red.

He nodded, a small smile appearing. "You're right. Everything I need is right here," Pierce grinned. "I can't believe I almost forgot that for a second. Thanks," he smiled, ruffling the little girl's hair. Grace beamed, as he took her and returned to the table.

"See? Happens every time," Sarph grinned. "Well, usually not with Grace, but you get my meaning,"

 _~P's Ds~_

 _"And-ah welcome to back to DG's Ds on P's E! I-ah am your host for today, Garrotte, and -"_

 _"Oh no you don't!" Kit shrieked, rushing in from off-stage and shoving Garrotte out of the way. "This is DK's Ds!"_

 _"DG's!"_

 _"DK's!"_

 _"DG's!"_

 _Kit cast his opponent an acidic glare. "Today's topic, on Doctor Kit's Documentaries, is why cats and foxes don't like each other,"_

 _"Yep. I-ah, Doctor Garrotte of Doctor Garrotte's Documentaries, am gonna tell you all about why us cats are a darn humdinger better than a smelly white fox," Garrotte smirked._

 _"I'm a canine! I'm higher on the food chain!" Kit shouted._

 _"I-ah can fly! So sucks to yur food chain!" the cat replied._

 _"I can possess things!" the fox shouted, possessing the currently blank blackboard behind them and swinging it forwards in an attempt to squash Garrotte. The S-Class cat punched it and smashed it in two, and Kit sprung out in shock._

 _With an angry bellow, Garrotte transformed into his battle form. In response, Kit dashed off stage and returned a second later, having possessed Pierce and transitioned into their merged Unison state. They promptly began to fight, completely demolishing the set in the process._

 _Sarah popped up out of nowhere and sighed. "Classic Phoenix's Eye,"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **And now you all know the story. Don't worry, Pierce will get his closure. In maybe another thirty chapters. XD**

 **Don't have much to say, except that I have a special little treat planned for Chapter 13, and I need a song. So, I'm turning to you, the readers! What song do you know that would be appropriate for Phoenix's Eye as a whole (but mostly the main characters). Tell me in a review or a PM, and if I agree, you might just be the lucky winner come Chapter 13! Peace!**


	12. The Harvest Festival

Chapter 12: The Harvest Festival

"Okay, Grace. Let's see what you've got," Pierce encouraged her.

He (with Kit), Grace, Boomer, Sarph and Tyria were grouped in the fields outside the guild hall, and they had decided that since Grace was reluctant to leave Pierce, she would probably be going on jobs with him and Tyria. And for that, they needed to know what her magic could do, because all they had to go on was the fact that Klimt had described it as 'Reality Dragon Slayer' magic, a fusion of two kinds of Lost magic; the Arc of Space, and Dragon Slayer. This didn't give them much to go on, because no one - not even the well-read Solid Script mage Ferdinand - had ever heard of the Arc of Space.

However, during the events at the testing station, she had used attacks strong enough to send Sarph, an S-Class wizard, flying. So it was decided that he was to be the target dummy.

"Don't worry. I can take it," Sarph encouraged her.

"Alright," Grace breathed, nervous. "Uh . . what am I supposed to do?"

"Just feel for your magic and force it out. Whatever attack you end up using will probably have a name, so just shout out whatever comes into your head," Tyria reiterated the advice her teacher had given her when she was learning magic.

"Okay," Grace nodded, trying to convince herself. She breathed in, feeling for the warm energy within her.

Unseen, inside her body, the lacrima nestled next to her heart began to glow.

She inhaled. "Reality Dragon's . . Roar!" A typhoon-like blast of energy emanated from her mouth, streaking towards Sarph . . . and barely fazing him.

When he realised that that was it, he frowned. "That can't be right. The attacks you were using yesterday were at least three times stronger than that,"

Grace shivered, and Pierce cast Sarph a reproachful look. Grace's memories of her time at the hands of Crypt's Spawn had been clouded, as though they were nothing more than an indistinct dream, but enough prodding would bring them back. And he didn't intend to let that happen.

"If I may," a semi-familiar voice interrupted. "I believe I can help," Totomaru walked up, swinging his sword idly. "The situation you describe sounds to me like Grace was using more power because she felt that her life was at risk. In a safe environment, she will of course not feel the same sense of danger and thus will not use the same level of power,"

"That makes sense," Boomer agreed.

"What are you suggesting?" Pierce frowned.

"Oh, just -" Totomaru dashed forwards, suddenly gripping his sword in both hands and bringing it back for a strike. Flames licked at the edge of his blade as he charged towards Grace, whose orange eyes widened in fear. "Reality Dragon's Spatial Wing!" she shrieked on instinct, bringing her arms up and crossing them to cover her face. A magic circle appeared in front of them, and Totomaru's eyes widened as the air in front of him rippled. Suddenly, he vanished.

Grace, lowering her arms and reopening her eyes, gasped. "Oh no!"

The four spectators' eyes widened. "Did she just . ." Tyria trailed off in horror.

"Not possible," Pierce gasped.

"Did you just kill him?" Kit demanded.

"Not exactly!" Totomaru's voice came from somewhere above them, and the five looked up.

The man was hanging, by his coat, from the extended spurs of the guild hall's roof. At least thirty metres above them.

"Teleportation magic?" Boomer gasped.

"No, not quite," Sarph shook his head. "She actually didn't touch him at all. But her magic, for just a second, bent the fabric of space so that the roof of the guild hall was directly between them, and he ran into the bent space. But when Totomaru was inside it, it went back to where it was supposed to be, on top of the guild hall, and took him with it. Which is how he ended up dangling from the roof. Understand?"

Pierce and Tyria nodded, as did Kit. Boomer, though, just stared in confusion. "Uh . ."

"It fundamentally is teleportation," Sarph nodded, sighing.

"Oh, okay,"

"This is all good and well, but would you terribly mind getting me down from here?" Totomaru shouted.

The S-Class wizard activated his Aera and went to rescue him. Totomaru returned to the ground with as much dignity as a man could muster while being carried in the arms of a much taller and more muscular man, keeping his haughty glare about him at all times. Pierce protectively stood between him and Grace. After that stunt, he wasn't letting the fire wizard near her.

"Where's your friend? That Fleur girl?" Tyria asked, also trying to distract Totomaru from Grace.

The black/white-haired man looked around in confusion. "Her name's Fleuressca, and she was with me before . . I have known her to hide in the bushes, but there aren't any of those around here," he frowned.

It was around then that a certain dark-haired, green-clad woman walked up to the group, out of the guild hall. "And what are you squirts all doing, milling around . . ." Hare trailed off as she caught sight of Totomaru.

'That sultry, holier-than-thou glare, the haughty way he keeps his arms folded, the slight twitch of his eyebrow beneath that rugged, mismatched hair,' she thought, drinking in every second of looking at him. 'Who is this man? Why have I never seen him before? What is he doing with these brats? And IS HE SINGLE?'

In a flash, she dashed over to Pierce. "Who's your friend?" she asked.

"Oh, him? That's Totomaru. He used to be with Phantom Lord before they disbanded," Pierce told her.

"Friend of yours?" the man asked, looking at Hare.

"Oh, no, not really, I mean I suppose you could call him a friend, but why would you when I could have much better friends, friends like you for example, say are you doing anything tomorrow night?"

Totomaru arced an inquisitive eyebrow. "No?"

"Oh, good, then I suppose . . ."

"What are they talking about?" Grace asked Pierce, inching closer to him.

"Don't worry, they're both just a little bit crazy. Let's go over to the sane people, like Boomer and Tyria and to a lesser extent Sarph," Pierce suggested, sheparding her towards his closer friends.

"Say, you wouldn't happen to have seen Fleuressca around, would you? I just can't figure out where she's gone off to," Totomaru asked Hare, looking around. Suddenly, his eyes widened and he smiled. "Oh, there you are. Come on over," he beckoned.

Hare, as soon as she spotted the silver-haired lady running towards them, almost growled. 'No . . surely that can't be his . . . no! I won't let that skank charm him! Totomaru is mine, you - you Love Rival!' she thought, furious.

"There you are. Where'd you go? You shouldn't just vanish like that," Totomaru reproached Fleur. She shrugged, cocking her head awkwardly, before turning and gesturing to a tanned, black-haired figure who was trailing behind her. "Gajeel," the fire wizard's eyes lit up in greeting.

"Hey, sparky. Princess over here," Fleur bristled at the annoying nickname, "was pretty insistent that I had to trek across town over to this dump for some reason," Gajeel explained, waving.

Pierce frowned in recognition. "Hey. You're Black Steel Gajeel. The Iron Dragon Slayer of Phantom Lord," he realised.

"The one and only. What, are you guys fans or something?" he asked with a smirk, a second before Tyria declared with a smile; "Another Dragon Slayer? That's perfect!"

"Wait, 'another'?" Gajeel blinked.

"This is Grace, a Reality Dragon Slayer," Pierce introduced the guild's new recruit.

Gajeel's jaw fell open. "That kid was raised by a dragon too?" Suddenly, he was shoving Pierce aside and staring down at Grace. "Do you know where your dragon is right now?"

"Uh . ." Grace shivered, and Pierce pulled her away, interspersing himself between the two. "Whoa. It's not like that. Grace isn't a 'real' Dragon Slayer like you and Natsu. She wasn't taught Dragon Slayer magic by a dragon, she's kind of . ." The Tamer paused, searching for the right word. "Artificial," he settled on.

"Oh," Gajeel looked disappointed. "How's that, then?"

Pushing Grace away for a moment, Pierce leant into Gajeel's ear and whispered a quick summary of the events surrounding her existence, culminating with, "She can use Dragon Slayer magic, though, and we were kind of hoping you could give her some tips,"

"A-oh, gotcha. So that's what the princess over there was trying to say," Gajeel's face cleared in understanding, before he turned to Grace. "Alright, half-pint, ready to learn?"

"This is Gajeel. He's an Iron Dragon Slayer, so he's the best person we have to teach you," Pierce explained, and Grace nodded.

"Alright, so Dragon Slayers have two universal basic attacks; one melee, a Dragon's Fist attack, and one ranged, a Dragon's Roar attack. Beyond that, attacks get more individualised depending on the element of the wizard in question," the older Dragon Slayer began. "For example, I can do this; Iron Dragon's Club!" His hand turned into a five-foot iron bar. The green-haired Dragon Slayer gasped. "You probably can't, but you'll have other attacks that I can't do. Now, what's the deal with this 'Reality Dragon' stuff? Show me what ya got," he challenged, folding his arms over his chest.

"It isn't that simple. Grace currently can't use her full power unless she subconsciously believes her life is in danger," Pierce frowned, and, seeing Gajeel's eyes light up with an idea, he glared a him in warning. "I know what you're thinking, and it is not happening. Your friend Totomaru already tried it, anyway,"

"She somehow teleported me onto the roof," the fire wizard explained, noticing Gajeel's inquisitive stare and doing his best to ignore the fact that Hare, for some reason, was staring daggers at Fleur, who looked very uncomfortable. "Not teleportation," Sarph irritably muttered to himself.

"Fine. Well, half-pint, show me what ya got," the senior Slayer suggested.

"Go on, give him a demonstration," Pierce gently coaxed her.

"Okay," The air around Grace's hand began to ripple, and she threw a held-hearted punch at Gajeel. "Reality Dragon's Transcending Fist!"

Gajeel raised a skeptical eyebrow and held up a fist to block, but the girl's arm from the elbow down rippled and vanished.

The Iron Dragon Slayer felt something hit him in the back of his head, and he turned to see Grace's arm, floating in mid-air, being retracted through the invisible distortion in space. "Cute trick. But it won't fool me twice," he shook his head.

"You think so?" the orange-eyed girl grinned.

"It has potential. You could catch most of your opponents off-guard like that," Gajeel nodded. "Problem is, it was weak. You need to build up some strength if you want people to feel it when you hit them. And there's only one way to do that,"

"Uh, what's that?" Grace paused.

"Practise,"

~P's E~

It became regular practice over the following couple of weeks for Grace and Gajeel to meet up to train and learn. The girl was still less than eager to be away from Pierce, so Pierce bought a spare mattress and set her up in his living room. He also bought her several sets of clothes, and a couple of little treasures, but told her that she would need to go on jobs to raise more money - with other wizards, of course. She was nowhere near ready to do a job by herself.

"Hey, Tyria! Did you hear the news?" Blanca shouted as she ran up to where the TechType wizard was having lunch with Pierce and Grace. Hare was seated with Totomaru and Fleur at the neighbouring table.

"What news?" the dark-skinned wizard raised an eyebrow.

"This!" Blanca declared, shoving a leaflet under her nose. Tyria looked at it, and slowly her eyebrow crept higher. "The Miss Fairy Tail contest? Isn't that only open to members of Fairy Tail?"

"Well, yeah, but that's the fun part," Blanca grinned.

"See, the Harvest Festival is -" Pierce started, but their pink-eyed guildmate snapped. "I'm the best at explaining, so I'll explain!" With that, Blanca launched into her explanation. "See, the Harvest Festival is a Fairy Tail tradition. And you know what Phoenix's Eye does whenever Fairy Tail holds a party," she darkly grinned.

"Uh, I've only been here for a bit under two months," Tyria pointed out. "So no, I don't,"

"We do everything we can to crash it," Pierce grinned. "It's all in good fun, of course, but-"

"But!" Blanca interrupted again, "it's something that the entire guild pitches in to help with, and so is taken pretty seriously. And it's always a lot of fun,"

"Oh, okay. So, what are we planning?" Tyria frowned.

"The guild usually breaks up into sub-groups, each of which is focused on making trouble in a certain way," Pierce informed her. "There aren't -"

"Aren't any written instructions, it's all passed along by word of mouth, to make sure that Fairy Tail can't get their hands on anything that might give them forewarning," Blanca finished with a pointed look at Pierce, who rolled his eyes.

"Okay, so, who should I talk to?"

"Me!" Boomer's voice came from behind her, and Tyria turned to see the chubby Sound wizard, boombox in tow as always, standing behind her and Pierce. Grace cheerfully waved, her mouth full of sausage sandwich.

"Master's put the four of us, plus a couple of others, on a special mission," Boomer grinned. "We get to fly the Garuda!"

"Mwhafda Garewdah?" Grace asked through a meaty mouthful.

"Right, I suppose you wouldn't know. About a month ago -" Pierce started.

"About a month ago, Pierce and Tyria, while on a job -" That was as far as Blanca got before Pierce requipped his flute and, with a quick two-note sequence, shot a blast of Inky's ink at Blanca, which covered her face in a black, sticky mess. The Plastic wizard fumed as she left to go wash off.

"While on a job, me and Tyria fought a dark guild named Plagued Vulture, and managed to steal a magic airship from them," Pierce testily explained. "We brought it home to the guild as a donation, and the Master's hired Astro, the guild's top mechanic wizard, to repaint it and upgrade it,"

"That's so cool!" Grace grinned after swallowing.

"It gets better. You know the Fantasia parade that Fairy Tail always holds at the end of the Festival?" Boomer ecstatically grinned. "No," Tyria deadpanned.

Pierce's eyes widened. "Don't tell me . . ."

"She wants us to blow the fairies right off their floats!" Boomer crowed. "It'll be awesome!"

"That sounds a little scary," Grace gulped.

"Don't worry, I'm sure it'll be fine. We'll be way up in the sky where the fairies can't reach us," Pierce reassuringly grinned, but for some reason, this didn't seem to make Grace feel any better.

"So, that's the plan! See you then!" Boomer grinned, dashing away.

"This is gonna be cool," Pierce grinned.

Grace looked markedly less enthusiastic.

~P's E~

"So, you wanted to see us?" Jashie asked. She and her brother Eishaj were standing - well, Eishaj was standing, Jashie was comfortably leaning on a trash can - in an alley outside Erza's favourite cake shop, and a tall, muscular figure was facing them.

"Yes, I did," Laxus confirmed. "I'm sure you've noticed the state of decadence that Fairy Tail has fallen into. Me and my team are planning to do something about that," he explained.

"And why should we care?" Jashie asked, as she and Eishaj revealed their guild marks on their left and right firearms respectively. "We aren't Fairy Tail, remember?"

"Because I know you're dissatisfied with your current situation as well. Help me clean up, and I can promise the two of you a spot in the new Fairy Tail,"

Jashie and Eishaj looked at each other, exchanging an entire conversation in a few seconds of eye contact. "This 'new Fairy Tail' . . . what would it be like?" Jashie finally spoke.

"No more weaklings, no more pansies. Under my rule, Fairy Tail will be a guild for the strong," the lightning mage declared, clenching his fists.

Once again, Jashie and Eishaj exchanged a silent conversation, before they looked back at Laxus and nodded. "Sounds good. We're in, and I think we might know a few others who would be interested," Jashie nodded, smirking..

"The more the merrier," Lexus smiled, before regarding Eishaj with curiosity. "Your brother doesn't talk much, does he?"

"He talks when he has to,"

~P's E~

The dim light of the crescent moon shone through Boomer's window, as the portly Sound wizard set about preparing for bed. His curly black hair fell about his head as he looked around the small apartment he rented. It wasn't part of the Nest - not that he couldn't afford to live there. No, he lived by himself for reasons completely unrelated to his financial status.

He told everyone it was because he liked his music loud. That, on the outskirts of town like this, he could play his music as loud as he wanted without bothering anyone. But that wasn't the real reason he lived alone. The real reason was currently lying, collecting dust, on an old bookshelf opposite his bed.

On an impulse, he crossed the room and picked up the book, bound in crimson leather and embroidered with arcane symbols. Even now, they faintly glowed in response to his touch, as he caressed the only words written in common Earthlish on the cover.

'The Darkened Book: Regykraon'.

No one knew he had it. Hell, just owning it was probably grounds for expulsion from the guild - no, forget expulsion. If word got out that he owned something like this, he would be arrested.

After all, that was the consequence of dabbling in dark magic. Especially dark magic of Zeref's caliber.

But that wasn't why the book worried Boomer. No, the book worried him because right now, as of that moment, it was empty. And had been for the last four years.

Realising that he was letting the vestiges of dark magic from within the book overpower him, Boomer snapped his fingers and the boombox lying on the floor burst to life, pumping a steady beat of heavy metal music throughout his little house and into the surrounding night. He smiled, feeling the vibrations in the air pull him back down to earth and released the book, letting it fall back onto the shelf.

The Sound wizard's mouth moved, but his words were lost in the music. **Luckily, subtitles were provided to the viewing audience once again.**

 _Someday . . when I'm strong enough._

 _~P's E~_

 _"Welcome once again, to DK's Ds! Which I am proud to declare is now, and forever, NOT DG's Ds!" Kit declared._

 _"Today, we're discussing the topic of festivals in Magnolia," he declared, pointing at a sketch of a carnival's big top tent._

 _"Fairy Tail and Phoenix's Eye both have their own festivals, and each gets in on the fun of the other's by, you guessed it, ruining it for the other group!" the yokai grinned, flipping the board to reveal another image of the same tent, but in a state of collapse, with a stick figure with a big grin running away._

 _"Fairy Tail has things like the Harvest Festival and Cherry Blossom viewing, while Phoenix's Eye celebrates Nesting Day, the anniversary of when the guild moved to Magnolia from Diamauros, and the annual fireworks show in July!"_

 _"These are all things to look forward to, but the one event that's considered 'sacred' and 'not to be interfered with' is the S-Class promotion trials, held annually in January by both guilds. The trials are the biggest event of the year for both guilds, and unlike the others, they aren't all fun and games. So neither guild would dare to mess with the other during the S-Class trials, it's too high-profile. And definitely unrelated to the fact that the fairies always hold their trials on a tiny island in the middle of nowhere and refuse to tell us where it is, and we change the venue every year so by the time Fairy Tail hears about where our trials are being held it's already too late for them to do anything about it,"_

 _"That's all for today! See you next time on DK's Ds on P's E!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **And here we go, the first teasing for the Sonic Boom arc, which is going to follow after the Battle of Fairy Tail (and Phoenix's Eye).**

 **I'm not sold on the name, but I don't have anything better. -.- Plus, at least it's appropriate. ^^**

 **Anyways, peace!**


	13. OT1: Here's To Us (Halestorm)

Chapter 13: Opening Theme 1: Here's To Us (Halestorm)

"Hit it," Pierce grinned at Boomer with Kit on his shoulder and Tyria and Hare behind him, who pressed a button on his boombox.

Music started to echo throughout all of Magnolia and beyond;

 _We could just go home right now,_

Tyria stands on a cliff, overlooking the ocean. She seems to be reminiscing about her homeland.

 _Or maybe we could stick around,_

Hare is perched on top of a tower, looking down at the camera with a cloudy sky behind her and a sour look on her face.

 _For just one more drink, oh yeah,_

Boomer is sitting on his boombox, in the middle of a field filled with tall grass.

 _Get another bottle out,_

The camera returns to the guild hall, where Pierce and Grace are standing outside and smiling as the camera passes between them. It enters and zooms in on a table where Eve and Ariel are trying to rouse Kana, who has drunken herself into a stupor, while Blanca draws on her face with a marker. Fleur is off to the side, watching this in a mix of interest and confusion.

 _Let's shoot the breeze, and stick around,_

Sarah is serving drinks at the bar, where Garred, holding a mug of beer, Russell, holding a glass of water, and Totomaru, holding a piña colada, clink their glasses together, with Sarah on hand for refills.

 _For just one more drink, oh yeah,_

At the top of the guild hall, Feng, with Garrotte on her left in his battle form and Sarph on her right, is watching all this with a smile on her face. Sarph is grinning and Garrotte is smirking.

 _Here's to us, here's to love,_

Pierce, Kit, Grace and Tyria are grouped around a table. Boomer is nearby, wearing a pair of headphones, and Hare watches from the next table over. All except Hare are laughing at something, and she is smiling just a little bit.

 _All the times that we messed up,_

Tyria, dressed as the Shellshocker, is shooting at Inky and Raya, who are defending Pierce, with her TechType: Gatling Gun.

 _Here's to you, drink the ale,_

Hare kicks the Vanish Brothers while they're in the middle of their combination, snatching away their frying pan before whacking them with it.

 _Cause the last few days have kicked my tail,_

Fleur charges after a backpedalling Pierce, swinging her sword wildly while Pierce blows fireballs out of his flute. Both are standing on the barrel of the Jupiter Cannon.

 _So lets give 'em hell,_

Raya suddenly emerges from the flute and Pierce leaps from the cannon, landing on her back and striking a pose like a surfer as she lifts him into the air, unleashing a stream of flame from her beak.

 _Wish everybody well,_

The plume of fire burst upwards, into the blue sky, like a massive pillar of fire that slowly resolves into the shape of a yellow-orange phoenix with glowing red eyes.

 _Here's to us, yeah, here's to us._

The guild hall appears in the foreground, with all of the guild crowded around the building. Grace is beaming, Pierce is holding up his fist that has the guild mark on it, Tyria is shyly waving and Boomer has his fists pumped. Hare is standing a little ways away from them with her arms folded.

"What are we doing?" Grace whispered. Her grin was starting to look a little painful.

"Posing," Pierce replied out of the side of his mouth. "Awesomely,"

"No, the entire video thing," Tyria clarified.

"It was Master's idea. Something to do with good PR," Pierce explained, still holding his pose.

"Well, you all have destroyed so much stuff that everyone hates us! So obviously I now need to release a cool musical video to convince everyone that we aren't all evil monsters! So you only have yourselves to blame!" Feng shrieked from the back of the crowd.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **And yep! The prize goes to ThePinkJirachi for suggesting Here's To Us! Not that there's actually a prize, but, y'now. Bragging rights?**

 **This is something that I plan to do every thirteenth chapter, in the same way that Fairy Tail has a different opening theme for every twelve episodes.**

 **Also, in regards to my (current) plan going forwards, I'm going to be interchanging canon arcs which involve Fairy Tail, with original arcs that don't, each of which will last between three and five chapters each. So, Battle of Fairy Tail, then Sonic Boom, then Oracion Seis. Not totally sure what'll come after that, but probably something focused on Pierce and Severed Tusk. Or maybe I could give Tyria or Hare some love? Either way, by then we'll be in Opening 3 territory, so not to be discussed yet. :P**

 **Anyways, peace!**


	14. CT1: Silhouette (Owl City)

Chapter 14: CT1: Silhouette (Owl City)

Pierce is walking down an empty path made of cobblestones and enclosed by hedges, holding his flute in his hand. He stares at it, deep in thought.

 _I'm tired of waking up in tears,_

Hare looks up at the setting sun as she walks down an identical passage. Hidden emotions play behind her wavering eyes.

 _'Cause I can't put to bed these phobias and fears_

Grace hugs her arms to her chest as she walks up her passageway, shivering and looking a bit nervous.

 _I'm new to this grief I can't explain;_

Tyria strolls along her route, tapping her fingers together absent-mindedly as she thinks.

 _But I'm no stranger to the heartache and the pain_

Boomer, carrying his boombox on his shoulder as always, contemplatively looks around, brow furrowed in thought.

 _The fire I began, is burning me alive_

Pierce continues to walk. A translucent image of Pierce as a child, with Raya perched on his shoulder, looking forlornly up at something, appears over him.

 _But I know better than to leave and let it die_

The scene changes, with Pierce now at his current age, with an arm wrapped protectively around Grace, Kit is perched on his shoulder, and Raya behind both of them with her wings spread. Pierce can still be seen through the image, and continues to walk, but with a small smile.

 _I'm a silhouette, asking every now and then;_

Grace trips, falling to her hands and knees. Reluctant to get up, she buries her head beneath her body, but as she does so, catches sight of the Phoenix's Eye emblem on her leg. She nods to herself, picks herself up, and keeps going.

 _Is it over yet? Will I ever feel again?_

Tyria morphs her arm using TechType: Tectonics, and taps the metal, looking forlorn.

 _I'm a Silhouette, chasing rainbows on my own_

Boomer pauses and turns around, looking back the way he came, before continuing to walk, but still looking behind him.

 _But the more I try to move on, the more I feel alone_

Hare does the opposite, keeping her body rigid and refusing to even glance at what lays behind her.

 _So I watch the summer stars to lead me home_

Finally, the five wizards, still wandering down their hedged pathways, enter a large, circular area, all at the same time. They all look around at each other and smile. Even Hare musters a small, but genuine grin.

No one notices the space opposite Pierce's corridor, where there is a sixth passage that nobody has come out of.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **Of course I couldn't have an opening theme without also having a closing theme. XD**

 **Anyway, back to regularly scheduled chapters soon. Until Chapter 27/28, when the next pair of themes will be placed. Peace!**


	15. The Impending War of Pranks

Chapter 15: The Impending War of Pranks

The following day, the guild, much of it at least, was gathered in the hall. Master had called a meeting to prepare for the Harvest Festival, and Pierce, Tyria, Grace, Boomer, Kit and Hare were gathered around a table.

"Excuse me, mind if I take this seat?" an unfamiliar voice interrupted them. Pierce looked up to see a girl with light purple hair, wearing a dark blue skirt and a crimson vest. The Phoenix's Eye logo was printed on her shoulder in purple ink. Without waiting for permission, she took a seat next to Grace.

"Uh, sorry, but I don't think I've seen you before," Pierce frowned at her.

"Sure you have. I'm Quarla, remember? I've been in the guild for three years. But I'm not around much because I work with Artorias a lot. Remember?" Quarla asked, waving her hand a little.

The confusion immediately cleared from Pierce's face. "Oh, of course, Quarla. How could I forget?"

"Because sometimes you're as thick-skulled as Natsu Dragneel," Kit quipped.

"Nice to see you. You should drop by more," Boomer nodded, grinning.

"Master says I'm gonna be with you lot on the Garuda, so we might as well hang out," Quarla nodded amicably. "I would be out with Artorias, but I wanted to join in on the fun at the Harvest Festival,"

"Quiet! Master's about to speak!" Boomer hushed them.

Sure enough, on the upper balcony, Master Feng was leaning on the railing and looking down at her guild. "Alright, everyone! I've already spread word about what everyone's doing in the festival, but just to be clear, I'm going to go over it again!"

"Russell, Garred, Ragnar, you're going to hijack the loudspeakers in town. Get them to shout our name to the sky!" Garred and Russell raised their mugs in celebration, and a red-haired boy in a suit of armour joined them.

"Eve, Blanca, Ariel. I want the three of you to enter the beauty pageant. Strut your stuff and show up the fairy girls!" Blanca and Ariel high-fived, with Eve nervously adding her hand to the mix.

"Garrotte, you have a special job. You're going to be sneaking into the Fairy Tail float hangar and seeing if you can sabotage them. Be creative," Garrotte doffed his hat with a smirk.

"Our new recruits, Totomaru and Fleur? You two, plus Hare and Michael, are going to tunnel into the Fairy Tail cellars and steal their booze!" Hare instantly appeared next to Totomaru, glaring daggers at Fleur from over his shoulder. A short boy with dirty brown hair and a yellow shirt joined them, looking nervously at the two women.

Pierce raised his eyebrows in interest at this. So, Totomaru and Fleur had officially joined? It sure took them long enough. Looking over at them, he realised something that had escaped him previously. During his fight with Fleur, she had been wearing a beret, which he had knocked into the ocean. For whatever reason, she hadn't retrieved or replaced it. He resolved to ask her about it at the first opportunity.

Feng continued to give jobs to the individual members of the guild, until her gaze rested on Team Pierce. "Pierce, Grace, Tyria, Boomer, Kit, Quarla, and Sarph? I have you all operating the Garuda during the parade. That's it! Any questions?"

There was a few moments of silence, but a quiet knocking at the closed, green double doors of the guild broke it. Ariel dashed over and opened one of them partway, just enough to see who was outside. Upon seeing who it was, she grinned and opened it, letting the newcomer in.

He was tall, around six feet, with fed hair that cascaded around his face like a waterfall. He wore a white jacket that hung to his knees and faded to pink, then red, below his waist, with a black vest and baggy black shorts underneath. He smiled and waved a little, golden eyes twinkling. "I don't suppose there's any room for me to join in?"

Feng raised an eyebrow in surprise, and smiled. "Of course, of course. You can join Pierce's group. They're just over there near the bar,"

"Alright," he nodded, sliding through the crowd with ease. People constantly shifted to make room for him, and Tyria scrutinised him as he approached. "Who's he?"

Pierce smiled. "Oh, that's Artorias. He's nice," he nodded, shifting across to make room for the red-haired boy.

Artorias. Wait . . . Artorias? "You're telling me that that guy is Bleeding-Vein Artorias, the third-strongest wizard in the guild?" she quietly demanded.

Not quietly enough, though, as Artorias, who couldn't have been more than two years older than her, sat at the end of table. "Yeah. Hi," he amicably nodded, twitching his fingers in the general impression of a wave. "You're new here, aren't you?"

"Is there a single S-Class wizard in this guild who actually acts like S-Class means something?" Tyria asked, stunned.

Artorias frowned, just a little bit. "She has met the Power Twins, right?" he asked Pierce.

"If you're done, that's all. Now, get to it!" Master Feng shrieked in the background. Half of the guild immediately emptied, members surging together, through the door.

Artorias looked around, taking in Pierce, Boomer, Tyria, Grace and Quarla. "Well hey, who are you two?" he asked, looking at the green- and purple-haired girls. His gaze focused on Quarla. "That's weird . . . I can't feel your blood. Who are you, exactly?"

She frowned. "Don't you remember? I'm your assistant, Quarla,"

Artorias narrowed his eyes. "No," he commented, maintaining his mild tone, but allowing an undercurrent of threat to creep into it. "No, I don't. That's interesting all on its own, but what's even more interesting is that fact that I can sense magic trying to cause an imbalance in the blood within my brain. Almost as if someone was trying to magically alter my memories," he commented, frowning at Quarla.

"I, uh," But now that memory manipulation magic had been mentioned, Pierce suddenly realised that he had been duped. He had never seen 'Quarla' before in his life, he had only been convinced that he had! Nearby, Boomer was coming to the same realisation, and Tyria had gathered that there was something very fishy going on.

Quarla looked like a deer caught in headlights. "Uh," She stood up and left her seat, but Tyria snapped, "TechType: Charge Whip!" A streamer of flickering energy emerged from her mechanised left forearm, and lashed out towards the escapee - only to have it pass through, as though she was not even there.

Boomer gasped. "A projection?"

Kit, though, who had stood up and his fur was standing on end, shook his head. "Not quite," With that, he threw himself at 'Quarla', in an impossibly long leap that no non-yokai could achieve, and made contact, knocking her over.

There was a 'poof' of smoke, and when it cleared, Kit was pinning a blue-and green falcon to the ground by the wings, who squawked indignantly. Tyria gasped. "It's that yokai - the one from the haunted house!"

But she only had eyes for Kit. "So, you're the yokai that 'befriended' a human?" she spat.

"And I suppose you're one of the old-fashioned poltergeist yokais," Kit snorted. "How old are you? Six? Seven?"

"Wait wait wait. She's only six or seven years old?" Tyria frowned in confusion.

"No. Six or seven hundred years old," the fox immediately corrected her. Tyria's jaw hung open.

"How rude! I am only four hundred and fifty-six!" 'Quarla' frowned. "I suppose you're one of those two-hundred-year-old 'new age' yokais,"

"Two-eighty-four, if you must know," Kit answered.

Now Pierce was dumbfounded. "Wait - you're how old?" he gasped.

"Which doesn't explain why you were trying to spy on us," Kit growled, flicking his tail.

"I wasn't spying on them. Like I'd bother with a few lowly humans. I was spying on you,"

The fox frowned. "What?"

"I wanted to know how exactly humans could persuade a yokai to be anything but hostile," she clarified, narrowing her yellow eyes.

Kit cocked his head, frowning, before looking back at the humans. "I think we need a private talk, away from the humans," he declared. "There's some lovely air vents up in the roof?"

"I'll meet you there," the falcon nodded, and both yokais vanished.

The five humans looked at each other. "Well, that happened," Boomer frowned.

"Should we wait for them?" Tyria suggested.

"Naah. We need to go find the Garuda and set up," Pierce declared. "Kit'll catch up,"

~P's E~

Up in the guild hall's air vents, Kit and 'Quarla' were crouched, each staring the other down. "Well? Are you gonna tell me what the humans offered you to make you betray your kind?" she hissed.

"You don't know what a guild is, do you?" Kit asked in response.

"A bunch of paltry humans squatting in a pile of wood and rock?"

"No," Kit rolled over, exposing the Phoenix's Eye emblem on his underbelly. "We yokais are rare and solitary creatures. I could count on the fingers of one hand the amount of other yokais I've seen in the last hundred years. And I don't even have hands!" he vigorously explained. "A guild, a real guild, it's a family. It's a group of people who will care about you and be there for you, no matter what. Phoenix's Eye, they don't care that I'm not human, and never did. They're my family now, and they're the best family I could possibly hope for. Because as long as I wear this crest on my body, I'm one of them, and they're all always behind me,"

"You would lower yourself to the level of humans because you're bored?" Quarla, completely misinterpreting Kit's lecture, huffed.

"No, I would lower myself to the level of humans because I'm lonely. After so many decades squatting in a cellar, I just got sick of it. I wanted friends, I wanted to not be alone anymore. And I've found that in Phoenix's Eye,"

The falcon considered this. "So, I'm not the only one," she quietly commented.

Kit raised a red-streaked eyebrow. "Huh?"

"It's been two hundred years since I had a conversation like this," she admitted. "I am lonely, I wish there were people around for me. But I always thought that it was just me, I was just being weak, and toughing it out made me strong,"

"That's never right," Kit compassionately shook his head.

"I need to think," 'Quarla' said, ignoring him, and vanished into the floor of the vent. Kit could have followed her, but decided not to. She deserved privacy.

~P's E~

Hare, Michael, Fleur and Totomaru were gathered in the street, looking up at the Fairy Tail guild hall. "Well, isn't this nostalgic? Attacking Fairy Tail," Totomaru commented.

"You use some kind of Earth magic, right?" Hare snorted at Michael, who nodded. "Tunnelling magic. I can dig into anywhere,"

"Fascinating. So, you can get into the Fairy Tail wine cellars?" the white-haired man asked, and Michael nodded eagerly.

Fleur tapped Totomaru on the shoulder, and made a series of hand motions that included clutching something and pulling it towards her, before waggling her finger and then miming picking two things up and placing them in the other's positions. "You think that we shouldn't just take their wine, but instead replace it with something else?" the fire wizard interpreted, and his friend nodded empathetically.

"No way. They'll immediately notice something's off," Hare protested, but Totomaru nodded, thinking it over. "Well, sewage is out, the smell would alert them. But I think I have an idea," he smiled. "Fleur, Hare, I need you to find as many empty barrels as you can. Michael, find a disused warehouse and start tunnelling into the wine cellars. Make sure that you don't leave anything that would tip them off,"

Fleur looked at Totomaru, cocking her head and placing her hands on her hips inquisitively. "You want to know why I'm getting so involved? I'll admit that I normally wouldn't. It definitely isn't my style. But we're still newcomers, and there's bad blood with the rest of our new guild that I want to get rid of. And if stealing Fairy Tail's beer is the way to go about it, then I'll steal every drop in Magnolia," he grimly smiled.

Fleur shook her head, before raising her palms upwards and then miming drinking something. "What am I gonna replace it with?" Totomaru inferred, and a sly grin crossed his face. "How many cows do you think there are in this city?"

~P's E~

"We are looking at the central control box for the entire speaker system of Magnolia," Russell smiled. He, Garred, and Ragnar were standing over a large hatch in the floor of an alleyway. Notably, instead of his usual bare chest, Garred was wearing a shirt on which was printed in big blue letters; 'FAIRY TAIL SUCKS'. "Ragnar, you got the chip?" Russell asked.

"Boomer and Astro loaded it up with their best stuff," Ragnar nodded. "This is gonna be awesome,"

"Great," Russell nodded, taking a small, cuboid lacrima from the youngest member of their team and inserting it into the complex mesh of wires and lacrimas underneath the hatch, before resealing the hatch. "And now we wait for some unlucky fairy to try to turn on the loudspeaker," he grinned.

"We're gonna bring the dinner to the table, and then we're gonna eat it!" Garred half-drunkenly crowed. "Eat our dust, Fairy Snails!"

Russell and Ragnar exchanged a mildly concerned glance.

~P's E~

"This is the place, right?" Pierce asked Boomer. The two of them, plus Tyria, Grace, and Artorias, were standing outside a large, dark green army bunker, made of reinforced metal with a pair of massive doors in the front and entirely circular

"Shouldn't you know?" Tyria frowned.

"Nah, this is Astro's bunker. He's a bit of a loner, so people don't come by here much. Plus, it's pretty hard to get here," Pierce pointed out, gesturing to the half-dozen miles of woodland that currently stood between them and Magnolia.

"Don't worry, I drop by here all the time. This is the place," Boomer reassured them, before striding up to the metal doors and knocking, hard.

"What's the passcode?" a tinny voice demanded from a lacrima set into the wall, just above the door.

Boomer rolled his eyes and pressed a few buttons on his boombox. A second later, heavy metal began blasting from the speakers.

"Oh, it's you, Boomer!" The lacrima had to shout to make itself heard. Immediately, the doors opened, and, satisfied, the Sound wizard switched his machine off.

"I brought the rest of the guys who are coming on the Garuda with me. Come out and say hello!" Boomer hollered as he entered.

The same tinny voice blared throughout the entire bunker, which appeared to be taken up by one massive room that made up the entirety of the bunker's innards. "If it's all the same to you, I would rather not. The Garuda is in the centre bay, enjoy!"

Grace ran ahead and gasped, looking around as hundreds of light lacrimas flared into existence throughout the building, illuminating dozens, possibly hundreds, of machines. Some looked half-finished, and others were complete, but she couldn't even begin to guess what they did. In the centre was a wooden ship that lacked masts, and had been set on a rolling platform that was shaped around its hull.

"Astro is a practitioner of a kind of magic called the Creative Spark. It grants him the ability to build just about anything out of whatever comes to hand," Pierce explained. "Unfortunately, it has its drawbacks. He's brilliant, but very introverted and a bit paranoid. I honestly can't remember the last time I actually saw him come by the guild hall," he admitted with a frown.

Tyria looked at the ship and nodded, recognising it as the ship she and Pierce had captured from Severed Tusk. "Where's the balloon?" she questioned, noticing the absence of the large canopy that the ship hung beneath.

"I dunno about a balloon," Grace's voice came from further down the ship, "but there's a really big blanket folded up on top of the boat. And it's not comfortable at all,"

"That's the balloon. It's just deflated," Pierce called to her. There was a silence as Grace digested this, then she replied, "Oh, okay,"

Suddenly, the platforms supporting the ship whirred into life, carrying it forwards. Pierce and Artorias frantically dodged out of the way as the ship was driven out through the large double doors at the front of the bunker. Grace, who was perched on the deck, lost her balance and fell to the ground with a thud.

The speaker system activated again. "Okay, you have the ship, you all can go now. Give Master Feng my best!"

"I don't think we're wanted," Tyria commented to Pierce, her sky-blue hair shivering.

"I agree," Artorias called from the other side of the ship's wake. "We should return to Magnolia, anyway. Even with the airsraft, we likely won't be back before dark. And we should all get plenty of rest in anticipation for tomorrow," he suggested.

"You three go," Boomer waved them off. "There's something I need to discuss with Astro privately,"

Pierce looked at the sun, dipping towards the horizon. "You'll never make it back to Magnolia by dark," he pointed out.

"Oh, don't you worry. I think I'll be fine," Boomer grinned, stepping further into the building. "See ya!"

The remaining three mages exchanged glances, and shrugged. "I suppose we can't change his mind. Will we be able to fly the Garuda with just the four of us?" Artorias softly asked.

"Well, last time Kit possessed it, but he's not here," Pierce frowned as the bunker doors closed behind them.

"Can't you recall him on your flute and then resume on him right here?" Tyria suggested. The Tamer paused, blinking. "Why didn't I think of that?" he bemoaned, raising his flute. A few notes later, a streak of white energy shot out of the forest and into the flute, at which point Pierce changed the tune, causing Kit to reappear. "What took you? I've been waiting all day!" he asked indignantly.

"Not all of us can walk through trees," Pierce pointed out. "Just possess the ship so we can get back to Magnolia, okay?"

"Fine, since you asked so nicely," Kit snorted, vanishing into the planks of the Garuda. Slowly, the large, red balloon canopy - which had obviously been replaced from the purple one Plagued Vulture had been using - began to inflate, and the Phoenix's Eye logo of an avian eye encircled by a pair of feathers began to appear in white. Grace looked up, fascinated, as Pierce, Tyria and Artorias boarded the ship.

"Alright, let's get back to the guild hall and get to bed. Tomorrow's gonna be a lot of fun," Pierce grinned.

 _~P's E~_

 _"Welcome, to DK's Ds!" Kit grinned. "Sponsored by Astro's Inventions! Insert a catchy slogan here!"_

 _He cast an irritated glare at the script. "That's just lazy!"_

 _ **"Well, you're the one who forgot to record one of these things when I finished this chapter last week, so you only have yourself to blame for lazy writing!"** the author hollered back to him from the director's chair. **"Man, I love this chair,"**_

 _"It's a collapsible piece of firewood with 'DIRECTOR' printed on it, get over yourself!" Kit snapped, before turning back to the camera. "Anyway. What are we gonna discuss today?" he asked, looking through his discussion notes. "Enchiladas, leprechaun gold, diamond pickaxes, interdimensional vortexes, giant towers of doom -" Kit huffed, throwing the notebook away. "We're officially out of ideas. Especially since we've already discussed yokais and S-Class wizards, and magic vehicles got plenty of exposition in the anime,"_

 _Kit paused as a thought struck him. "Well, it's better than nothing. Today I'll be giving you a run-down of the author's revolutionary new chapter submission technique!"_

 _"You see, unlike every other story he's ever tried to publish, in which he just threw chapters out online as soon as they were finished, Technow is now trying a new system, in which he has two or three chapters done in advance. This gives him more of an opportunity to fix any mistakes, as well as to make short-term changes if mandated by subsequent chapters without causing readership confusion. The author is actually starting Chapter 18 when I'm saying this, but to make sure that it passes the quality check, he'll probably be up to Chapter 21 by the time that gets posted,"_

 _"That's all for today! See you next whenever, on DK's Ds on P's E!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **Astro's magic, the Creative Spark, and to a lesser extent his entire character, is inspired by the webcomic 'Girl Genius' by the self-proclaimed Professors Foglio, which I highly recommend as being brilliant. ^^**

 **While I'm on that topic, something I probably should have made mention of a while ago;**

 **Fleur(essca Delacroix) was given to me by ThePinkJirachi.**

 **Artorias (surname pending) is owned by Uchiha Brotherhood.**

 **Garred (Dillinger) comes from BlueBearHero21.**

 **Ragnar . . . anyone who was around for Chapter 8 knows about him. For everyone else, he was created by Martyn.**

 **And in the next three chapters, the Battle of Fairies and Phoenixes! This is gonna be sweet. Peace!**


	16. Perfection Immortalised in Stone

Chapter 16: Perfection Immortalised in Stone

 **(Warning, as a result of the 'beauty contest', for this chapter only the rating is officially altered to T. I've done my best not to be particularly provocative, but it's a beauty contest. More to the point, it's a Fairy Tail beauty contest. And Fairy Tail never does anything by halves. It's not very bad, completely teen-friendly and with the exception of a snippet or two, mostly kid-friendly, but I've still highlighted the section just in case.)**

"So," Boomer spoke. "How is it?"

"Just about done. The engine's finished. I just need to finish calibrating the pressure differential to make sure it won't explode, and that won't take long at all," Astro replied. Not through a lacrima speaker. The inventor wizard was there in person with Boomer, standing in a partitioned section of his bunker and staring at his latest project. He was tall and spindly, covered by a labcoat that seemed to dwarf his frame. Shocked spikes of white hair crowned his head, and eyes that were deep-set and dark, but twinkled with life, eyed the shorter, fatter boy. "Are you sure about this? I understand that you want justice, but -"

"It isn't justice," Boomer shook his head. "It's making sure that I can clean up my messes,"

Astro grinned, revealing crooked, yellowing teeth. "I can understand that, boyo. Well, if you're so dead-set on travelling down this road, I can at least make sure," He fingered the sleek black wheel of his invention. "That you do it in style,"

Boomer dubiously eyed the metal wheels. "Are you sure about that design? Tyres exist for a reason," he frowned.

Astro snorted. His long, slender fingers twitched aimlessly. "Where you're going, you won't need tyres," he smiled. "When do you plan to leave? Tonight?"

Boomer shook his head. "Nah. The Harvest Festival's tomorrow. I might as well give them one more party before everything goes to hell,"

~P's E~

The next morning, Pierce yawned, waking up, and basking in the warmth of the rising sun shining through the window. Faint snores came from the other room, where he knew Grace was still asleep. He smiled, before climbing out of bed. Today was the Harvest Festival. The beauty pageant was happening at 10 o'clock, and the float festival as soon as the sun went down. He considered his options for a second, and shrugged. The beauty queen pageant was only open to Fairy Tail wizards (not that that would stop Blanca, Eve, and Ariel), but anyone could enter the Fairy Tail guild hall to watch.

Considering that Magnolia had a population of about three thousand, and Fairy Tail and Phoenix's Eye both numbered around a hundred members each, the guild hall was probably gonna be pretty crowded, but he could handle that. And, considering the castle that Fairy Tail now called a guild hall, overcrowding was unlikely to be a problem.

And so it was that, three hours later, Pierce led Grace by the hand down the road that led towards Fairy Tail. Already the massive white building loomed above them, and Pierce was not entirely surprised to hear shouting as he approached the entrance.

The surprising thing was that one of the voices was recognisable as belonging to his own guild master. And the other, he recalled from the occasion when the Fairy Tail wizards had been crucified by Phantom Lord.

Yes, the two Guild Masters of Magnolia seemed to have decided that it was a good idea to have a shouting match right outside the guild hall.

"-what am I supposed to do to that end, with your blooming castle of a guild hall dominating the skyline?" Feng shrieked.

"Well, don't look at me! It's not my fault that Fairy Tail can afford to build a castle, while Phoenix's Eye has to make do with a dilapidated old barn!" Makarov huffed.

"Oh, you should have seen our guild hall in Diamauros. It put your pile of rocks to shame!" the Fire wizard snapped, and the shorter master snorted, folding his arms. "Well, why don't you rebuild it, if you remember it so well? I would definitely like to see this guild hall that put our pile of rocks to shame," her Giant-using rival mockingly smirked.

"Why you disrespectful little -" Tendeils of fire emerged from Feng's sleeves as she stepped back to give her magic room to work. And it did, streaking towards Makarov, who retaliated by using an enlarged fist to smash them into the ground.

Pierce rushed up. "Whoa, whoa, master!" he shouted, before looking at Makarov. "And other master," he added. "Do you really think it's a good idea to fight here and now? The beauty pageant is about to start, and as much as Fairy Tail needs to be remodelled, I think that this is the wrong day for it," he frantically attempted to placate the feuding fighters.

Feng frowned, but nodded. "I suppose you're right," she sighed.

"You aren't scared because I'm a Wizard Saint and you aren't?" Makarov couldn't resist one last crack with a smirk.

A snare of solid fire wrapped around his leg and flung him into the air, and he landed with a heap on the ground as Feng returned his smirk. "Whenever you're ready, Maky," With that, she, with Pierce and Grace in tow, entered the guild hall, which was almost packed wall to wall with wizards, Fairies and Phoenixes alike.

They were more than a little (but not entirely) surprised to see Totomaru, Fleur, Juvia and Gajeel seated around a table near the entrance, catching up. "Master Gajeel!" Grace grinned, waving. Pierce cocked an eyebrow at that.

Gajeel noticed and grinned. "Hey, half-pint,"

"Master," Totomaru nodded, rising and moving to pass close to her as he made for the snack table. "I would advise that you refrain from drinking the beer," he whispered in her ear. Feng cocked an eyebrow for a second, but nodded imperceptibly.

The Phoenix's Eye Guild Master led her young guildmates to an empty table near the back. "So, Pierce. How is Raya?" she asked as soon as they were seated.

"She's fine," Pierce grinned, raising the flute. "I'd call her out, but there isn't enough room," he shrugged. Feng nodded.

"So, what's a beauty contest?" Grace asked. "Is it what it sounds like?"

"A bunch of girls competing to see who can make the most guys drool? Basically, yeah," Pierce nodded.

"Sounds fun!" the green-haired Dragon Slayer grinned. "Can I join in?"

Feng and Pierce exchanged a glance. "Maybe in about five years?" Pierce awkwardly suggested. "Aww. Alright,"

"It's gonna begin any minute now," Feng smirked, spotting about a dozen of the Fairy Tail girls, including faces Pierce recognised such as Lucy, Erza, Juvia and Kana, quietly exiting the main hall.

Sure enough, the curtains blocking the stage began to pull back, revealing a Fairy Tail wizard who Pierce thought was named Max. "Alright, gentlemen! Welcome to the annual Miss Fairy Tail compe - hey!" The man interrupted himself as a deluge of water poured down from the roof, which seemed to be rapidly turning overcast.

Up in the rafters, Ariel and Eve were crouched, with Polaris joining them from the Celestial World. "Fountain," Ariel smirked, holding up her pen, whose nib was glowing blue.

"Is that a rain cloud?" Pierce asked in surprise, looking at Feng. "Why yes, it is. Ariel seems to have gotten better with her water magic, enough so that she can condense the water in the air to create a rain cloud, even indoors," she smiled, impressed, and completely unbothered by the fact that her red karate gi was soaking wet.

"Don't worry, everyone, I've got this. Very funny, Phoenix's Eye," Macao, the Fairy Tail wizard, groaned, before shooting a netting of purple fire into the sky, obliterating the oncoming storm.

"Anyway," Max attempted to remain unruffled, despite being soaking wet. "Our first entrant is the lovely, the dazzling, quite possibly the most beautiful girl in Magnolia, the - cut it out!" At this last compliment, a deluge of water had begun to rain down from the rafters, specifically targeting Max. He glared at the ceiling vehemently as his already-soaked suit got even wetter.

Macao loosed another shot of purple fire, and Max continued, having gotten the hint not to flatter the contestants too much. "It's Mirajane!" And with that, the light-skinned Strauss sibling strolled easily onto the stage, wearing her usual white dress. "I've got a special little show for you all today!" she winked.

All of the more shameless men in the hall were ogling their eyes out, drooling at the thought of what Mirajane surely had in store for them. Pierce watched this with disdain.

Mirajane's face was, for a second, obscured by smoke, and when it cleared . . . she was blue, with whiskers and cat ears. "This is my Happy face!" she grinned in a perfect imitation of Happy's high-pitched voice.

Every male jaw in the guild fell open. Happy, seated with Natsu at a table a little ways away from Pierce, cheered. "Go Mirajane!"

She transformed again, and noew she was bald, with a think white beard and wrinkles covering her face. "And this is my Master face!" she grinned. Her brother, seated at a table, paled. "She's a man?"

Pierce, chuckling, looked over to see how Makarov himself was taking this. The elderly man had collapsed over his table, his eyes empty, and a white ghost was trailing out of his mouth. He decided to make the obligatory joke; "Hey, something came out,"

Mirajane seemed to be preparing to do a third, but Max hurriedly shooed her off the stage. "Ah, heh, moving on from that . . . whatever that was," he gulped, shaking his head. "Up next is the enchanting enchantress, the girl who shuffled and drinks in equal excess; Kana Alberona!"

 **(Note: here's where the T-ish-rated stuff begins. Scroll to the next bold bit if you want to skip it.)**

The tanned, scantily-clad woman strode onto stage, swaying her hips and smirking at the boys. "Hey boys, know what this is?" she smirked, holding up a card that depicted a swimsuit. Makarov suddenly recovered, gazing at her adoringly.

But before she could activate the card, a streak of white energy blasted it out of her hand, where it fluttered to the ground. Kana looked after it in surprise, before turning to look off-stage, where the shot came from. "Hey!"

This provided the perfect opportunity for a barrel of wine, attached to the roof directly above her by a measure of rope, to swing down from the roof and slam into her, throwing the card magician back against the wall. "Hey, what gives?" she protested. "I thought Phoenix's Eye liked me!"

That was before she noticed the label on the barrel. "Booze? I guess they do like me after all," she grinned, uncorking the barrel and raising it to her mouth.

In the audience, Totomaru smirked.

Kana spluttered and threw it away, frantically spitting every trace of a chunky white substance out of her mouth. "Expired milk? Really?" she shrieked, furious. The Phoenix's Eye guild members present grinned widely. Kana staggered off the stage and towards the bar, where, the bar being bereft of a tender in Mirajane's absence, she clamped her lips to the tap and turned it on full blast - only to have more of the disgusting substance be sucked out of the cellars into her mouth.

Her screams could probably be heard back at the Phoenix's Eye guild hall.

All of Phoenix's Eye burst out laughing, and even a few Fairy Tail members joined in. Feng wiped tears of mirth from her eyes, watching Cana frantically try to wash out the taste of the rotten milk.

"Ah, moving on," Max gulped. He felt that. "Our third contestant is a new addition to Fairy Tail's ranks, but no less attractive for that! Meet Juvia Lockser!"

The blue-haired Fairy strolled out onto the stage. "Now then," Juvia looked at a specific point in the audience. Pierce realised that she was focusing on Gray Fullbuster, the ice wizard. Was there something going on between them? "I dedicate this performance to you, Gray my darling," she pithily spoke, and Pierce nodded, his suspicions confirmed. Interestingly, the ice wizard seemed less than happy about this turn of events.

Suddenly, Juvia's body rippled and transformed entirely into water, before reforming, revealing that her white-and-blue clothes had vanished and she was dressed only in a swimsuit. Max narrated this development with a grin. "Isn't she just steaming?"

"Well, I am rather hot," Juvia nodded, batting her eyelashes at Gray. "It ashames me that boys other than my beloved Gray are seeing my body, but it's worth it to know that Gray likes what he sees,"

"No, folks, Juvia is literally steaming, and it's a little worrying," Max gulped.

Juvia paused in her posing and squinted at the door, where it had been opened a crack and a glare of light was hitting her eyes. She froze.

Blanca, wielding a magnifying glass and a wicked smile, was focusing the sunlight on her aqueous body, and slowly causing her to evaporate! The blood slowly drained from her face at the thought. "Uh, I'm done now. Why don't you introduce contestant number four?" Juvia frantically asked Max, dashing off the stage.

"I'm the best at evaporating rainwomen too," Blanca grinned. "Who's so awesome? I'm so awesome,"

"Uh, alright? Well, Entry #4, the competition's very own little bookworm and the cutest, most charming young wizard in Magnolia -" Yet again, a deluge of water rained down from the ceiling. Max fumed irritably tapping his foot until it stopped. "I'm just going to stand over here from now on," he declared, stomping to the edge of the stage and trying in vain to preserve the remnants of his dignity.

"That one was for Eve," Ariel grinned from the rafters, throwing her friend and the Celestial Spirit crouched next to her a thumbs up. Polaris nodded approvingly, absent-mindedly making golden darts appear and disappear, orbiting around her hand, while she waited for her next target.

"Anyway, meet Levy McGarden!" The blue-haired Solid Script Mage pranced onto the stage, twirling her pen between her fingers. A pair of men, one wearing a ridiculous brown hat and matching coat, the other with a flower-like hairstyle and a golden harness over his white shirt, immediately shoved their way to the front of the crowd and cheered, "LEVYYYYYYY!"

Pierce blinked. And he thought Hare had love problems.

"Let me show you how words are as good as any picture!" Levy grinned, spreading her arms wide and releasing hundreds of tiny, multicoloured objects that gathered around her. "Solid Script Special Style: Picture-Painting Thousand Words!"

"Are those insects?" Grace asked.

"No. Those are Solid Script colours. She's written words like 'red', 'blue', 'white' and 'green' in really small ink, then made them all hide in her clothes before being released to form -" Suddenly the swarm ceased, to reveal that it had congregated around Levy's body, forming a roughly square image of the bookworm in question lying in her underwear in a field of short grass and a book lying open on her chest. Instead of forming Levy's face, the girl's head poked through the portrait, grinned and winked.

"That," Pierce finished, impressed.

"Cool," Grace grinned, but that was nothing to how the two wizards - Jet and Droy, wasn't it? - reacted. They shrieked in approval, pink love-hearts appearing all around them, and redoubled their efforts to reach out over the barrier surrounding the stage and touch her. Levy grinned as her magic fizzled out, thankfully revealing that her usual clothes remained, and danced off stage.

"A stunning performance from Miss McGarden, which thankfully was not interrupted," Max cast an angry glare at the ceiling. "And up next is entrant #5, the sexy sniper who swam the seas to strut her stuff,"

Eve knew that Bisca was her responsibility. "Polaris, go home. Open, Gate of the Beetle!" she commanded, producing and turning her second key. "Scarabus!" A quiet 'ding-dong' sounded, and a swarm of insects appeared from a magic circle. They formed a roughly humanoid figure, made of shifting black bugs. "What do you command?" Scarabus asked.

"Send a few of your parts down there and mess up her act. But be discreet," Eve whisper-commanded.

"It's Bisca Mulan!"

The sniper wizard, who was already dressed in her underwear and her hat, smirked, holding up a quartet of coins in her hand. She posed, before magic flashed in her free hand. "Requip: The Gunner!" Bisca commanded, and her sniper rifle appeared in her hand, before tossing the coins into the air.

Four tiny, almost invisible bugs flew down from the rafters, each of which latched onto one of the coins as they span in mid-air, and as Bisca raised her gun and fired, aiming to shoot a hole through all four coins in one blow - as one, they each darted out of the way, seemingly of their own volition.

Bisca blinked, before frowning as she realised what had happened. "Oi, Phoenixes! Chew on this!" she commanded, raiding her gun further and firing at random into the rafters.

Four coins suddenly hit her in the face, and a moment later, her gun stopped working. Bisca looked down in surprise, and spotted four tiny beetles flying away with her firing pin. "Give that back!" she commanded, snatching at the nimble thieves, who obediently dropped the pin and vanished.

"Good job, Scarabus," Eve smiled in the roof.

As Bisca stormed off stage, Max groaned. "And now, our sixth contestant; give it up for the queen of the fairies, an undefeated swords woman and the girl I want more than anyone else in the building -" Ariel decided to prove that she could make it rain anywhere on the stage by manifesting a waterfall from her fountain pen directly above Max's position. "Fountain," Already soaked, the water just served to irritate him more.

"You know what?" Max growled, leaping down from the stage and jumping over the railing before climbing onto the closest table. "Ha! Try to rain on my parade when I'm not even on the stage!" he smirked. "And everyone, give it up for Erza Scarlet!"

The red headed S-Class wizard strutted onto the stage and posed, wearing her armour. "Time to show you boys the softer side of one of my stronger armours," A set of swords appeared in a circle behind her, floating in mid-air, and circled around her as Erza's body was enveloped in golden light. "Requip: Heaven's Wheel!"

Her silver armour appeared around her, metal wings flaring out and lifting her into the air, where she pitched forwards, supported by her rotating swords.

Pierce blanched. He had never realised how provocative Erza's favourite armour could be. Evidently, half of Fairy Tail never had either.

And Max, standing on the table directly in front of where Erza was hovering, had the best display of all. "What a performance! I could stare at that forever, but unfortunately we have to move on!"

Erza nodded, returning to the stage, before Requipping into her normal garb again and leaving.

 **(Slightly provocative bit is over!)**

"Now, contestant number 7 is Fairy Tail's rising star," Max paused, thinking for a second. The common thread between his assaults was when he said that one of the contestants was prettier than the Phoenix's Eye girls. But there was one way that he could flatter Lucy that they surely couldn't take object to. "The shining star of Celestial Magic that eclipses -"

Ariel, at this (unintentional) insult to Eve, bristled and decided to prove that no matter where Max stood, she could make it rain on him. "Fountain," she hissed, unleashing a deluge of water that doused both Max and the people seated at the table he stood on.

Max groaned. "That's it!" He snatched up one of his neighbours by the shirt collar, who Pierce thought was a dark-skinned man named Warren, tore off his clip-on bow tie and attached it to Warren's shirt. "From now on, you're the presenter! I quit!"

Warren blinked at this unexpected development, landing on his feet on the edge of the table as Max jumped off - and the subsequent shift in weight caused the table to overbalance. The dark-skinned wizard frantically leapt clear and, landing on the stage and clearing his throat, spoke. "Um, okay then? Lucy He-"

"Don't say my name!" Lucy shrieked, dashing off the stage and clamping her hand around Warren's mouth.

Warren nodded, and Lucy released him. "Lucy, everyone!"

The crowd was confused, taken by surprise by this development. Pierce smiled, seeing his neighbour.

"Alright," the Celestial wizard took a deep breath. "Today I'm going to be performing a cheer for you with my Celestial Spirits," she smiled, taking a key out of her mini-satchel that contained the golden keys. "Now, open, gate of the -"

"Entrant number 8!" a clear voice cut her off, and everyone looked in surprise as a vaguely familiar voice strolled out of the side-stage area.

The Fairy Tail wizards, as well as a few of the Phoenix's Eye wizards, 's eyes widened in recognition. "Evergreen," the whispers ran throughout the crowd.

Makarov's eyes narrowed. "If Evergreen's here, then Laxus must be too,"

Pierce's eyes widened when he heard this. 'Laxus? Fairy Tail's S-Class lightning mage? His power's on the same level as Bleeding-Vein Artorias, if not higher. And I hear he has attitude to rival the Power Twins,' He shuddered. Jashie's personality plus Artorias' strength equalled a terrifying prospect.

"Wha - hey! What do you think you're doing, interrupting my routine?" Lucy demanded irritably.

"I'm sorry," Evergreen lowered her glasses and looked at Lucy. "Could you repeat that?"

The dark-haired, half-naked wizard - Gray - flipped. "No! Don't look into -" he shouted, panicked, but it was too late. Lucy and Evergreen made eye contact, and just like that - the Celestial wizard was petrified. Her entire body turned to stone.

"Nice trick," a more familiar voice interrupted. Evergreen redonned her glasses and shifted her gaze to the direction where she had just come from. Jashie strolled onto stage, flipping her dark hair back as she pulled a rope with both hands. "But it gets a little boring once you've seen it seven times," she pouted, pulling. The backdrop curtain of the stage pulled upwards, revealing the six other contestants, who had been similarly petrified.

"But I think you'll have to do it a couple more times," Jashie shrugged, before raising her palms and blasting the ceiling with black energy. "Nega-Neon!"

With a shriek, Ariel and Eve fell out of the ceiling, and crashed to the floor. Evergreen immediately grasped Ariel's neck and raised her head, forcing her to make eye contact. The water wizard was immediately petrified.

Eve, stunned from the fall, was unable to protest as Jashie kicked her so that she was lying on her back, and Evergreen repeated the process. "Eight, and nine," Jashie huffed. "Don't you have any other tricks?"

"What are you doing?" Feng demanded, standing up and glaring at Jashie. Pierce, meanwhile, was a little more defensive. If Jashie was around, her brother Eishaj wouldn't be far away.

"Release the girls! Now!" Makarov demanded.

"I don't think so," Evergreen shook her head. "And, honestly, I don't know why you're complaining. They were all already beautiful, and now that beauty is immortalised in stone. Don't tell me that's a bad thing,"

Makarov growled, but just then, lightning crackled and blazed on-stage. Laxus' muscular body appeared, bursting with electricity, and he grinned, baring fangs. "Hey, old man,"

"What are you playing at, Laxus?" Makarov demanded, fists clenched.

"Oh, I'm just getting into the spirit of the Harvest Festival. Haven't you all wondered who's the strongest wizard in Magnolia?" the blond man grinned.

"Have you considered Gildarts?" his grandfather retorted.

Laxus tched. "That's beside the point. This is a projection. I am currently hiding somewhere in Magnolia, as are the rest of the Thunder Legion, and our newfound allies," With a smile, he gestured to Jashie. In a flare of light, Eishaj appeared next to her. Freed Justine blurred in by way of a swarm of purple runes, and Bickslow was suddenly standing right next to Laxus - likely also a projection. Finally, an unfamiliar figure joined Jashie and Eishaj on Laxus' left.

Pierce's eyes widened. He recognised the newcomer. So that was how Laxus was achieving these projections. But wait, Jashie and Evergreen had been seen using their magic - they couldn't be projections.

Feng frowned. "Lorus! What do you think you're doing?" The man was tall and slender, but made up for it by wearing a large cloak that trailed to the ground, blue on the outside and cyan on the inside, with black hems and long, hanging sleeves. His face was angular, driving forwards a pointed nose and chin, with narrow, close-set eyes that glittered with mania, crowned by cerulean hair styled upwards in four spikes. Lorus' lip twitched in a hint of a smile, and he spoke in a high-pitched, nasally voice. "The villain has decided it is in his best interests to join the winning team, master. Or should that be ex-master? Because the villain is absolutely certain that Laxus will make a better guild master than you or the old man," he grinned.

"The rules are simple. My six allies are spread throughout Magnolia, as am I. You all have three hours to find and defeat all seven of us. Honestly, the odds are in your favour. Fairy Tail and Phoenix's Eye both have, what? A hundred-odd members each? It's two hundred against seven," Laxus cut himself off with a chuckle. "But that's not the point. If you haven't beaten me in three hours, then Evergreen will destroy the pretty statues behind me. And I'm sure you can guess what will happen to your friends then,"

Pierce clenched his fists, angry. How dare this trumped up muscleman take members of his guild hostage like that? . . . And the fairies. Them being hostages was bad too.

"You bastard! Come and fight me, right now!" Natsu shrieked, and charged at Laxus, who merely raised an eyebrow as the Dragon Slayer passed right through him. As one, half the guild facepalmed at the fact that Natsu had already forgotten that Laxus was a hologram, and not actually there. He hit the wall and moaned, slumping to the ground. "What an idiot," Laxus snorted. "Anyway, clock's ticking. I know that only part of Phoenix's Eye is here, so Lorus back there is transmitting the situation to the Phoenix's Eye guild hall as well. Anyway, have fun!" And with that, all members of the group except Evergreen, Jashie, and Freed vanished, and Freed immediately grabbed the two girls by the shoulder and vanished into purple runes, taking them with him.

Feng fumed, and a couple of tables over, Makarov mirrored her expression.

"Well? What are we waiting for?" the muscular, dark-skinned Fairy - Elfman? - asked. "Let's rescue our girls like real men!" he shouted, leading the charge out through the door. The vast majority of the wizards in the guild followed suit.

The guild masters, though, were more reserved, and Pierce would have joined them, but Grace had suddenly, inexplicably vanished, and as he rose to try to find her, he heard the guild masters talk.

"Shall we work together to find our errant children?" Feng asked.

"No," Makarov replied. "Our chances will be better if we split up,"

"I suppose so. Let's go!" Feng nodded, and both elderly wizards charged towards the door - and slammed into an invisible barrier.

"What the hell is you two's problem?" one of the slower fairies - hey, that was the same Gray guy as before! - demanded.

"There's some kind of barrier. I can't get through it," Feng growled, pushing with all her might. Flame flared around her hands, but to no avail.

Makarov looked up, where a set of purple runes were floating above them. "That's Freed's magic. Dark Ecriture. It says that no one over the age of eighty or who is a stone statue can leave,"

"Well, that rules both of us out," Feng sighed.

"You know, I always thought you were only seventy," Makarov frowned.

"I'm far older than you think," Feng replied. "Now, explain this Dark Ecriture magic to me,"

Pierce nodded, tuning out Makarov's explanation of Fred's runes and their abilities as traps. He already knew all about Freed and the Thunder Legion. And the fact that they had teamed up with the Power Twins, not to mention Lorus, who was one of the favourites to make S-Class in next January's trials, was concerning. In Fairy Tail and Phoenix's Eye alike, there were only a scant few who could stand up to them, and one of them - Erza - was standing, petrified, on the stage.

And a green-haired girl was, for no apparent reason, sniffing around her feet. Pierce jumped onto stage and frowned down at her. "Grace, what are you doing?"

"I'm trying to catch Laxus' scent," she replied, constantly sniffing at the floor. "Master Gajeel's been teaching me some Dragon Slayer tricks, including enhanced dragon senses,"

Pierce raised his eyebrows. That was new.

Finally, Grace straightened up, and grinned. "Got him!"

"You think you can find Laxus by his scent?" the Tamer asked for confirmation, and she nodded. "Come on! We only have three hours!"

Pierce grinned, trepidation but feeling overwhelmed by Grace's enthusiasm. "Alright! Let's go find Laxus. We'll need to pick up some backup, though,"

"Good idea," Grace grinned, and with that, they charged out through the exit, unimpeded by the runes.

Feng watched them go. "That boy of yours, Pierce," Makarov frowned. "I understand he's one of your rising stars?"

"Yes," Feng nodded. "Someday, he'll be a great wizard. Much like your Natsu,"

"Can he beat Laxus?" Makarov asked.

Feng looked at Makarov with solemn eyes. "No chance,"

 _~P's E~_

 _"It's time for another round of Doctor Kit's Ds!" Kit grinned._

 _"Today, because it's been a long chapter, I'm not going into a proper discussion. Instead, I'm going to make some clarifications about Grace's Dragon Slayer Magic in comparison to 'real' Dragon Slayers like Natsu and Gajeel,"_

 _"Even though Grace wasn't raised by a dragon, she should not be considered inferior in terms of power. She's younger and comparatively inexperienced, so if they fought, Natsu and Gajeel would trounce her, but that is only because of the power gap between them. Just because she's a 'second-generation' Dragon Slayer, doesn't mean that her Dragon Slayer magic is less potent in any way. She still gets all the benefits of normal Dragon Slayers, like enhanced senses, Dragon Force (when she gets powerful enough), the ability to eat her element," Kit winked, and conspiratorially whispered, "Immunity to animas,"_

 _"So, yeah. She could be considered a Phoenix's Eye peripheral to Wendy, and, indeed, her character was designed with that in mind," Kit giggled. "Look at me, breaking the fourth wall! What a rush!"_

 _"Also," Kit paused, reading the fax machine's latest readout. "The author wants me to note that there will be no DK's Ds during opening theme chapters, like last chapter, just in case that isn't clear,"_

 _"Anyway, that's it! See you next time!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **And the Battle of Fairies and Phoenixes is underway! I've also decided to throw in one extra OC, just so that the Phoenix's Eye wizards have someone extra to right. That ensures a level of dichotomy; three Phoenix's Eye wizards, three members of the Thunder Legion, plus Laxus in charge of both groups.**

 **And I'm thinking that Battle of Fairy Tail will last three more chapters, so that Sonic Boom can kick off in Chapter 20. So, yeah, peace!**


	17. Battle of Fairies and Phoenixes

Chapter 17: Battle of Fairies and Phoenixes

Over in the Phoenix's Eye guild hall, the entire story had unfolded via a massive hologram that took up the entire guild hall and was no doubt generated by Lorus, and the guild's inhabitants who weren't at the beauty contests watched the events unfolding st Fairy Tail, stunned.

"To think that the Power Twins would stoop this low," Artorias frowned.

"That's just wrong," Tyria gulped from the seat next to him.

"Hare, with your Speed magic you could find Laxus in a few minutes. We need you to find him and get back here," Russell, as one of the most senior members present, took charge.

"I really hate being told what to do," Hare growled at him. "So consider yourself lucky that I'm even angrier with those freaking psychos! I'm gonna find Laxus and beat him up myself!" she shrieked, and vanished in a blur. The wind kicke up by the speed of her departure sent gusts throughout the building.

"She is gonna come back, right?" Michael asked, raising his eyebrow beneath his mop of shaggy brown hair.

"We can't count on that," Boomer shook his head. "I've got a backup plan, but it might take a little while to set up. I'll be back soon," he declared, following Hare out through the doors.

"Where's he going?" Tyria blinked.

"I don't know, but he has the right idea! Come on, everyone! Eve and Ariel need our help!" Russell declared, leading the charge out through the doors.

"They're all so noisy," Artorias sighed as he stood up from his seat. Tyria followed suit, and he looked at her inquisitively. "Are you following me?"

"These guys are all crazy strong. I kinda figure my best chance of survival is with an S-Class wizard," she meekly admitted. "I hope you don't mind,"

Artorias gave her a small smile. "Not in the slightest," he nodded. "But you also know that, because I'm one of the strongest wizards currently in Magnolia, it's my duty to find and take out as many of the troublemakers as I can. So if you stay with me, you'll be right in the thick of things,"

Tyria paused, considering this. "I still like my chances better with you," she admitted.

"Then by all means, come with me," Artorias gracefully nodded, sweeping out of the guild hall. His long, white cloak billowed around his feet as he walked, and Tyria followed, scampering to keep up.

~P's E~

"And here!" Grace grinned. Pierce looked at the building she was standing outside, before looking back at her. "You're sure this is the place?"

"Yep!" she enthusiastically nodded.

"It's just that Laxus doesn't seem like the type to hide out in a cathedral," Pierce frowned, looking up at the towering spires of Kardia Cathedral.

"I'm positive he's in here," Grace repeated.

"Alright," Pierce nodded, Requipping his flute. "But we shouldn't attack," he frowned. "The two of us aren't strong enough to beat Laxus on our own. We need backup,"

But the street was deserted. "I don't see anyone," Grace pointed out.

"Then we'll just need to find someone," Pierce resolved, turning to leave - and suddenly a wall of runes appeared, sandwiching them between it and the cathedral. Grace gasped. "What does it say?"

Pierce paused, squinting, before shrugging. "I don't know. I can't read runes,"

"It says that people inside this area, namely five metres around Kardia, cannot leave until they have either defeated or been defeated by, Laxus Dreyar," a horrifyingly familiar voice offered from behind them. Pierce and Grace slowly turned, and spotted the massive blonde wizard staring down at them with a savage grin. "It's a shame. I was hoping that one of my no-good 'guildmates' would be the first to find me, but I guess a couple of little birds will be a good warm-up," Laxus snorted. "Now, it doesn't make any difference to me whether I crush you here or inside, but I think you'd appreciate the added room to manoeuvre in our fight. I'll be waiting inside," With that, he turned and retreated to within the cathedral.

"I'm sorry," Grace whimpered, looking down. Pierce's gaze softened, and he ruffled her short green hair. "Hey, don't worry about it. You were jut trying to help," he grinned. "Now, come on. There's no such thing as a fight that can't be won. And even if we get our asses handed to us, at least we can soften him up for the next guys to face him," he grinned.

"But . . you could get hurt. And so could I," the young Dragon Slayer gulped.

Pierce chuckled. "So? We're phoenixes, remember? No matter how bad we get beaten down, we'll get up again amid a torrent of divine flames," he reminded her. "And hey, remember what Gajeel taught you. You aren't just a phoenix, you're a dragon,"

Grace smiled. "A phoenix dragon?"

"That's right. Two of the most powerful creatures in Fiore, right there with us. What's Laxus gonna do against that?"

"You're right! We're gonna kick his ass!" Grace grinned. Space began to ripple and distort around her clenched fists, and Pierce paused. Had he just taught an innocent little girl the word 'ass'? . . Crap. (Another word he shouldn't repeat to her.)

But time for that later . . . Despite what he had just told Grace, Pierce knew that the two of them stood no chance against Laxus. Grace had only been in the guild for two and a half weeks, and he was good, but he wasn't S-Class. Still, going into a fight expecting to lose was no way to fight, and he didn't want Grace to get into bad habits.

Besides, Laxus was a pile of cerberus dung, but surely he wouldn't actually kill them, right?

"Let's go!" Grace grinned, and he followed her as she burst through the door, raising his flute and tapping the lacrima inside it, giving Raya the code to get ready.

He was totally expecting the bolt of lightning thrown at them from the other side of the room. And that isn't even a lie. Why else would he blast a flaming note of music at it?

Lightning met fire in the centre of the room and exploded, the more powerful lightning forcing the fire back and showering the half of the room where the two Phoenixes were in sparks.

"So, you decided to fight? More fun for me," Laxus smirked, watching them split up. He looked at Pierce, gauging him to be the greater threat, and his smirk widened as he raised his flute. "What, are you gonna play a lullaby?"

His eyes widened when, instead, Pierce threw a kraken at him.

Inky squealed in delight as her tentacles lashed out, wrapping around Laxus - who immediately broke free with a burst of lightning.

Inky recoiled, and began to sob in pain. Her attacker shook his head in surprise, and suddenly looked up as Grace, using the harsh muscle training she had received from Gajeel, leapt up and shouted, "Reality Dragon's Transcending Fist!"

'A melee attack? But she's so far away,' Laxus thought with a frown, and was caught by surprise as a small fist, cloaked in the fabric of reality itself like a boxing glove, slammed into his temples. He staggered back in surprise, fists flaring with lighting. "Did I get him?" Grace asked, excited, as she landed.

Pierce recalled Inky so that he could get a better look, just as Laxus regained his balance. "You got me alright," the blonde nodded. "Got me angry, that is!" A long tendril of lightning arced out and zapped Grace, who screamed in pain - and her scream suddenly changed into a twisting, pulsating blast of grey energy. Pierce's eyes widened. 'The research facility - they trained Grace's brain so that, whenever she gets electrocuted, she immediately roars with full power,' he remembered. 'Not good,'

Laxus wasn't expecting this. The tornado of reality-warping energy smashed into him, throwing him backwards into the wall. 'That girl . . how is it that she can attack while being hit? And with such strength . . her previous attack was nowhere near as strong,' he thought, confused.

Pierce scrambled over to Grace as she collapsed. He placed his hands on her shoulder and stared at her. "Grace? How are you feeling?" For he briefest instant, he paled.

The glassy look in her eyes, the one from when he had first rescued her, had returned. But then they closed and she shook her head, and when they opened again, the Grace he knew had returned. "I'm good," she nodded, rubbing her head.

"So, that's you, is it?" Laxus' voice echoed through the cathedral. Pierce sprang back to his feet, fists clenched and flute raised. "You're Phoenix's Eye's pet baby dragon,"

"I'm warning you; if you touch her," Pierce growled.

"You know, it's kind of a shame," the lightning wizard mused. "You have potential. Give it another decade or so, and you could probably give me a real fight. So, considering that, I'll let you live," he coldly smiled.

A massive blast of lightning erupted from the ground beneath Grace, throwing her into the air. Pierce watched, mouth open, as she smashed through one of the stained-glass windows and vanished from sight.

"Relax, she'll survive. Which is more than I can say for you," Laxus exhaled, looking at the Beast Tamer in disappointment. "You, on the other hand, could never beat me,"

Pierce's lip twitched in a faint smile. "Maybe not. But I'm damn well gonna try," With that, he raised his flute and played, the tune repeating three descending notes.

Brakodidon erupted from the instrument with a howl, and all three of the black cerberus' heads glared down at Laxus, who raised an eyebrow. "Maybe I underestimated you," Then the middle head wrapped its jaws around him and lifted him into the air.

With a pulse of lightning, Laxus burst out, landing again, and the middle head whimpered in pain. "Odie!" Pierce gasped. "Break, Don! Get him!" The other two heads lunged forwards, trying to pin their foe down, but Laxus transformed into lightning and burst out.

Pierce frantically returned the injured cerberus to his flute, and leapt aside as a blur of yellow flashed into the space where he had been. Laxus reformed, but Pierce was already playing a new tune.

Until Laxus snatched his flute away, the tune unfinished, and glared down at him. "Not so tough without your music stick, are you?" he snorted, throwing the flute away into the corner. Pierce stepped back, gulping. "I'm gonna make this quick," Laxus smirked.

Then a green blur shot out of nowhere and kicked him in the face. Laxus actually stepped back in surprise, and suddenly Hare was standing between him and Pierce. "You think you're hot stuff?" she challenged. "I think you're -"

She didn't even finish the sentence. A massive bolt of lightning shot from Laxus' outstretched hands, blasting into her and Pierce with her. Both were flung against the far wall. Pierce collapsed, unconscious. His eyes fluttered shut, surrounded by chunks of debris, and he lay there, his flute a foot out of his reach where Laxus had thrown it.

Hare, though, despite a ringing pain in her head, was awake. "You did good, for a little brat," the black-haired Speed wizard exhaled irritably as she stood up. "Come at me, muscle-man! I ain't afraid of you!"

"A poor decision," Laxus rumbled. "You'll be even easier to defeat than the other two,"

"Try saying that with my fist in your mouth!" Hare blurred up to him and punched him in the jaw. Laxus didn't even flinch, a massive fist shooting out and grabbing her arm. "Nice try," he snorted, flipping her onto her back. Hare gasped, winded, but her opponent snorted. "You can't even give me a good show," With that, he rammed a punch into her chest that left a dent in the floor, and her bruised body lying within it.

Laxus returned to one of the pews that were still standing, and sat down to wait. After a few moments, he looked back at Hare's unconscious form. "Maybe I should have dragged the fight out more?" he wondered.

~P's E~

Grace screamed as she flew in a wide arc through the air, before landing in a wide street. She bounced on impact, flying through a wall of runes before crashing to the ground in a heap

Alzack Connell, who was just about to deliver the finishing blow to his guildmate Jet, paused and looked at her. Jet, already exhausted from his previous blows, collapsed anyway, falling over Droy's unconscious body. Alzack looked at Grace, spotting the Phoenix's Eye logo on her leg, beneath her skirt, and took her in while waiting for the runes to disappear, signifying his victory and allowing him to exit.

Only they didn't disappear. Instead, the runes read; 'Alzack vs. Jet vs. Droy: Winner; Alzack. Alzack vs. Grace: In progress,"

Alzack read this in concern, before looking back at Grace's semi-conscious form. "I'm sorry," he grimaced, raising his gun again. "But for Bisca, I'll do anything,"

"I'm afraid I can't allow that," a new voice interrupted from outside the wall of runes. Alzack looked up - right as his gun vanished into green sparkles.

It reformed, appearing in the newcomer's hands. "I won't let anyone hurt her, not as long as I have anything to say about it," Garred declared, lifting the gun. He pulled the trigger, and the bullet streaked between the runes to hit Alzack in the chest, directly parallel to his head. With a blast of white magic energy, it impacted, and, already hurt from the previous fight, it was enough to stop the gunner in his tracks. Alzack toppled over next to his former opponents, and the runes read, 'Alzack vs. Grace: Winner; Grace,' before vanishing.

Confident that he wouldn't be trapped by the runes, her rescuer released the gun and it vanished, returning to Alzack, as he ran over to Grace. "Hello? Can you hear me?" he shouted, and was rewarded by the girl slowly opening her eyes. "Gu-huh . . Garred?" she slowly recognised the older man. "Are you alright? What happened?" he asked.

"Laxus . . He's in Kardia Cathedral," Grace spluttered.

"Yeah? Good to know," Garred nodded. "But we can't beat him. We need to find some strong wizards, like Sarph or Artorias. Then we go fight him,"

"Okay," Grace nodded, staggering to her feet.

~P's E~

"This is bad," Makarov frowned. Feng nodded. "Two hundred wizards between us, and only sixty are left standing by now? And not one of the troublemakers have fallen,"

"This would be going so much better if Natsu and Gajeel could fight," Makarov sighed. "I hope so, anyway . . . at least Fairy Tail's faring better than Phoenix's Eye! We have thirty-three left to your twenty-six!"

Feng smirked. "I'm pretty sure that counter includes the hostages, as well as Natsu and Gajeel. If you factor that in, we're even,"

The counter dinged, and Fairy Tail's count fell by one. The master of Phoenix's Eye looked at it in mock surprise. "Oh, look. I'm winning,"

"Shut up," Makarov growled. Turning away, his eyes wandered to the stage, where Natsu was holding a flaming fist to Erza's face. "WHAT ON EARTH LAND ARE YOU DOING, YOU LITTLE BRAT?!"

~P's E~

Meanwhile, Artorias and Tyria were drawing up on an enemy. "Lorus is in the theatre on the next street over," Artorias confidently commented.

"What makes you so sure?" Tyria asked, worried.

"I can feel it. The blood flowing through his veins, in tune to the beat of his heart. No two people's heartbeats are the same, and I never forget a heartbeat," He shot her a small smile. "I'm strange like that,"

They turned the street corner and paused outside the theatre. "Why would Lorus hide out in here?" Tyria asked.

"You don't know Lorus," Artorias shrugged. "You'll see," With that, he pushed his way through the doors and strode into the theatre. Tyria hastily followed.

"Lorus!" Artorias' voice echoed through the massive room at a volume that Tyria had not known the soft-spoken wizard to be capable of. "I'm not in the mood to waste time!"

The curtains on the stage at the far end of the theatre, which was a rather standard design; a large stage hidden by red curtains, facing several rows of seats. The curtains pulled back, and the figure Tyria recognised from the projection appeared from between them. Loris, his massive blue cloak flaring up behind him, stared down at them. "Ah, how delightful! The young hero and his beautiful sidekick coming to challenge and vanquish their foe,"

"I'm also not in the mood for theatrics," Artorias frowned. "Additionally, I can sense the fact that you don't have any blood. I know that you on the stage is an illusion, and the real you is somewhere over there," He promptly pointed to the left of their current position, and, sure enough, Lorus vanished and reappeared where Artorias was pointing. "Very well done," Lorus praised his opponent's abilities. "So, the hero has discovered he has an advantage over the cruel villain, and he intends to use it to his benefit. But the villain knows this as well, and he has already devised a counter-strategy," And, with that, Lorus vanished.

"Where'd he go?" Tyria looked at Artorias expectantly, but the S-Class wizard frowned. "I . . don't know. I can't sense him,"

"Wonderful!" Lorus' voice echoed through the theatre, pitched in a way that it bounced off the acoustics of the walls and make it impossible or determine his location. "Good villains are always elated when a fiendish plot comes to fruition, and this villain is no different!"

"I don't suppose you have anything up your sleeve?" Artorias asked, turning to look at Tyria - only to discover that she had vanished. "Tyria?" he called, looking around frantically.

Tyria, on the other hand, was experiencing a similar predicament. Artorias had just stated that he was unable to sense Lorus' presence when he had suddenly vanished, leaving her alone in the theatre. "Okay, stay calm. Think this through," Tyria told herself, breathing deeply.

"Do you know where the villain is?" Lorus' voice echoed through the theatre. "Can the heroes see him?"

A thought came to Tyria. "TechType: Helmet!" she commanded, and the Shellshocker's mask manifested on her face. "Engage infra-red vision!" she added, and the visor lit up red. She smiled, seeing Artorias in front of her, and, looking around, spotted Lorus behind her, near the exit.

"It doesn't matter that the plucky sidekick can sense her foe's heat signature," Lorus shook his head. "For he can still affect the light between her visor and her eyes,"

"No you can't," Tyria smiled under the mask. "I get it now. You use light magic, bending and altering light to create illusions and make yourself invisible, confusing your opponents and allowing you to pick them off at your leisure. But my TechType: Helmet is a direct transformation of my face, including my eyes, into metal. The thermal detectors that allow me to see your body heat are wired directly into my optic nerves. You can't affect light that doesn't exist, and as long as I have my Helmet, I can see you plain as day,"

Lorus frowned. Tyria walked down the aisle towards him, focusing on her enemy. "You can't fool me, so you can't beat me," She raised her arm; "TechType: Pneumatics!" and created her tectonic club.

"What a fascinating plot twist! However will this villain react to this?" Lorus thematically asked. "Unfortunately, the sidekick has underestimated the things that the villain can do with light! Observe!" Suddenly, the air around Lorus crystallised into some kind of rainbow-coloured mineral, forming three large, pointed rocks that floated around him. "The villain has the power to change light itself into a physical object and attack with it! While the hero blunders in the background, the sidekick has no way to combat this -"

"TechType: Machine Gun," Tyria interrupted, manifesting the weapon on her left arm and returning fire. Bullets peppered the chunks of crystal, causing cracks to run down their length and splinter. Lorus watched in surprise, before frantically forming a shield as Tyria turned the gun on him. "The young heroine thinks that she had scored a blow! But she does not realise that her foe can still control the crystallised light, no matter how small it might be!" With that, the broken and fragmented chunks of crystal light raised into the air, before throwing themselves in every direction. Tyria gasped, frantically trying to shield herself, but they still cut her, scoring nicks in her unprotected legs and face.

Nicks that produced blood. And that was all that Artorias needed. He span around, turning to face Tyria perfectly, even though he could not see or hear the ensuing fight thanks to Lorus' illusions. "Tyria! I don't know if you can hear me, but I need you to draw blood! All you have to do is make Lorus bleed, and then I'll be able to see him!"

Lorus frowned. He had released the enchantment preventing Tyria from seeing or hearing him or Artorias because her helmet meant she could see regardless, but he hadn't counted on Artorias shouting instructions to her. "The hero is an S-Class wizard, something that the villain now realises is more than a mere title," he frowned.

"I'm not sure I can do that, I'm a little pinned down," Tyria replied, not that Artorias could hear her. She had her TechType: Force Field up and running, and the shards of crystal were bouncing off it. The muzzle of her gun was protruding just outside the field, allowing her continued fire.

Lorus frowned, noticing this. "The villain has just realised his attacker's weakness! While her shield prevents projectiles from getting through, it is useless against melee attacks!" he crowed, coating his fists in crystallised light and charging. Tyria gasped. 'How did he know?' before his crystal-coated haymaker slid through her shield effortlessly and clocked her in the face.

The force was stunning, her gun and shield emitter vanishing, and Tyria barely managed to keep her helmet on. Lorus smirked and struck again, this time sending her staggering into one of the seats nearby. Her helmet vanished, and she blearily rubbed her eyes. "Anyone catch that train's license plate?" the wizard moaned.

"How disappointing. With the heroine down, it shall be a simple task to defeat her male companion," Lorus sighed.

Tyria's eyes narrowed, even as her opponent vanished, cloaked in his illusions again, and she growled; "Don't count me out yet, you postulating poser," as she returned to her feet. Red warnings played across her vision, supplied by her technological magic.

The photokinetic wizard snorted. "What is the sidekick going to do? She can barely walk,"

"Gear Change!" Tyria shouted.

Lorus frowned. "What?"

Her dark-skinned body lit up, glowing with blue energy. "Mark: Second!" Her blue, ponytailed hair tore out of its band and stiffened into spikes, turning silver, and her blue eyes glowed electrically. She suddenly stood up straighter, fingers splayed and ready for combat as the glow from her skin weakened, but remained.

"You're in trouble now," Tyria growled, "because I just hit my overdrive," She clenched her fists and raised her arms, and two massive silver gears manifested on her forearms. She blitzed forwards, kicking Lorus into the air as the gears on her arms span. "TechType Mark II: Forty-Eight-Peg Gear Blitzkrieg!" she shrieked, crouching and getting beneath him as he flew into the air, before raising the massive gears on her arms and letting them rip into his cloak like chainsaws. The force of the blow threw Lorus into the air, coat and undershirt in absolute tatters, where he landed unceremoniously in a heap across three of the chairs in the audience.

Panting heavily, the gears vanished from her arms and her spiky, silver hair, already torn out of its usual ponytail by the transformation, fell around her face as it changed back to blue. She turned to where Lorus had fallen, and watched him get back up. "Not bad, this villain is impressed! But did the heroine really think it would be enough to stop him?"

Tyria chuckled, shaking her head. "Not really, though that would have been nice," she admitted. "But it made you bleed,"

Lorus frowned, confused. His fingers traced a spot on his face where one of the massive gears had bitten into his face, causing a thin trickle of blood to run down his cheek. "Bleed? What is the heroine -"

And then Artorias was upon him. "I see you," he hissed. "That blood on your face? It's a marker, a signpost that tells me, via my blood sense, exactly where you are," he coolly, darkly smiled. "I don't care how many illusions you heap on me, what trickery befuddles my senses. As long as you bleed, you can't beat me," He hammered punches into Lorus' face, the blood on the illusion wizard's cheek painting a bullseye for him, even though to Artorias it seemed that he was punching empty air.

Tyria watched, leaning on a nearby chair, and gasped as suddenly, her blood, leaking out of her cuts, lifted itself off her skin and swarmed towards the S-Class wizard in a small, pulsating mass. The injuries suddenly congealed, scabs forming instantaneously, and Tyria suddenly came to a realisation as the blood focused itself into razor-sharp whips and began to beat Lorus, seemingly of their own volition; 'Bleeding-Vein Artorias', all his mentions of blood . . his magic. It was Blood Magic.

"And it's kind of a continuous loop, if you know what I mean," Artorias sadly smirked down at Lorus, whose illusions had collapsed around when Artorias broke his nose. "The more I hit you, the more you bleed. The more you bleed, the easier it is to hit you," He paused in his onslaught of fists and borrowed blood, both Tyria's and Lorus' own, and lifted Lorus into the air by the remnants of his shirt. "Well? Do you concede?"

Lorus, cut and bleeding all over, his nose squashed into a bloody mess, and much of his clothing in shreds, could only meekly nod. "Good," Artorias nodded, dropping him into the space between seats, before turning and walking away. "How are you feeling?" he addressed the question to Tyria.

Tyria, still shocked by the brutality of his assault on Lorus, only meekly nodded. "I'm fine,"

Artorias looked at her, scrutinising her, and sighed. "You're afraid of me now, aren't you?" he looked away.

"Well . . I know why you're an S-Class wizard," Tyria tried to put a brave face on.

"Don't worry, I'm used to it," Artorias sighed. "Everyone starts to fear me sooner or later . . ." he trailed off.

Tyria rested a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Hey, I'm scared by a lot of people. That doesn't mean they're bad people,"

The Blood Mage looked at her, and his small smile reappeared. "Alright,"

 _~P's E~_

 _"Roll up, one and all, to Doctor Kit's Circus of Documentarial Fun!"_

 _Crickets chirped in the background, and Kit sighed. "What? I gotta do something to make it non-repetitive,"_

 _"Moving right along. Today, we're gonna discuss the finer points of Lorus' magic, since I think it passed a lot of you by,"_

 _Kit showed two stick figures, one with a big coat, surrounded by squiggly dashes. "You see, Lorus has the ability to control light and solidify it. Thai is even more interesting because he can still control the light after solidifying it, allowing him to use the crystal light as projectiles,"_

 _"That isn't all he can do, though. Remember how he managed to prevent Artorias and Tyria from hearing each other? He can use the light in the air to block sound waves, thus rendering his opponents selectively deaf. Because he can also control what they see through influencing the light that enters their eyes, he can render his opponents deaf, blind, and thus helpless - unless they can find a way to fight without relying on their eyes and ears, like Tyria using her helmet to trace his body heat, or Artorias sensing his blood,"_

 _"Speaking of which, that's also why Artorias lost track of Lorus' blood at the start of the fight. He sent light into Artorias' body via his nose and got it inside his brain, where he bent it so that it blocked his ability to sense blood,"_

 _"So, photokinesis, or control of light, doesn't sound like much on paper, but when you think about it, it's actually a very versatile and powerful kind of magic. That's all for now, adieu from DK's Ds!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **Lorus is probably the most eccentric character I've ever created. That's all I have to say about him. XD**

 **So, yeah. Sorry for the absence, had a block, and peace!**


	18. We're Gonna Win, I'm Positive!

Chapter 18: We're Gonna Win, I'm Positive!

Boomer was wheezing for breath by the time he reached Magnolia's outskirts, where his house lay. Knowing that every second counted, he had pushed his body beyond its limits, and was paying the price for it. But that didn't matter. He was physically exhausted, but his magic was running hot, and once he made it to his house and got his secret weapon fired up, that would be all that -

Boomer suddenly ran into an invisible wall.

He staggered back, reeling, and blinked up at the air in front of him, as a massive wall of purple runes, reaching into the heavens, manifested in front of him, before reassembling themselves into Earthlish; NO MAGIC USER MAY LEAVE THIS AREA BEFORE LAXUS DREYAR HAS BEEN DEFEATED.

Boomer blinked up at this, and his eyes widened as he realised what it meant. He stared, forlornly, at his shack of a house, which lay just ten metres away, outside the wall.

"Trying to escape, are we?" an unfamiliar voice snorted in disdain. The Sound wizard turned, and saw Freed Justine, his sword swinging lazily.

"No. I'm trying to get to my house, where I left my new weapon," Boomer frowned, gesturing to the house outside the barrier.

Freed arced an eyebrow. "Really? Oh, that is a shame. But as much as I would like to see this weapon, I'm afraid that no exceptions can be made to to the rules,"

Boomer sighed, patting his boombox, and surreptitiously turning the volume dial to its highest setting. "Oh well. I guess I'll just have to fight you with what I've got," he frowned, and made the boombox spark to life. Instantly, the sound of an electric guitar, blaring out a heavy-metal riff, could be heard for miles around. Boomer had carefully selected this music, reasoning that the prim, eloquent Freed would hate loud, nonsensical noise.

And it seemed to be working. Freed gritted his teeth and shouted something in irritation, clapping his hands to his ears. Unfortunately, his words were drowned out by the noise, and Boomer narrowed his machine's focus with his magic, pinpointing Freed with the torturous vibrating air.

He grinned. This was working. He could beat Freed, and once Freed was beaten, the wall would go down! Then -

The music stopped.

"Dark Ecriture: Silence," Freed narrated, a runic seal plastered over the boombox. "Have you got any other tricks?"

Boomer blanched. "Uh . . . maybe?"

Two minutes later, Boomer fell to the ground, unconscious, rendered defenceless against Freed. The green-haired man sniffed disdainfully. "Phoenixes,"

~P's E~

About half an hour later, Erza had defeated Evergreen, and thus the hostages had been released. Makarov had subsequently crowed about the fact that no, the hostages had not counted, and Fairy Tail was winning. To counter this, Feng had reminded him that, before Erza had returned to the fray, Fairy Tail had been whittled down to Natsu and Gajeel, trapped in the guild hall, while Phoenix's Eye still had seven wizards remaining (Artorias, Sarph, Garrotte, Garred, Grace, Totomaru and Tyria, as Grace had technically not been defeated) in the field. With the nine hostages released, and Mystogan's surprise return to Magnolia, the guilds were collectively sitting on nineteen wizards total. "Twenty, as soon as Lucy summons Loke," Makarov irritably argued.

And then came Laxus' reveal that he had activated the Thunder Palace.

"Enough," Makarov shook his head. "My reputation is not worth more than the lives of everyone in Magnolia. I'm going to surrender to Laxus,"

"What? No!" Feng protested, as did everyone who hadn't left yet - namely the Fairy Tail Dragon Slayers and Levy, who was decoding Freed's enchantment to release them.

But Makarov was already on the second floor and opening what looked like a cupboard. Feng hurried up to him. "What are you doing?" she called as she ran.

"I'm going to use the town speaker system to tell Laxus that I surrender. It's not worth it," Makarov shook his head as he withdrew a microphone and spoke into it. "That is enough, Laxus! I will surrender. You can be master of the guild," he began, as Feng cried, "No! Don't!"

All over the town, the speakers crackled to life, and the guild master's voice boomed, "That isn't enough, Laxus! I won't surrender! You cannot be master of the guild!"

In the cathedral, Laxus tched. "Stubborn old fool. Let's see how he feels coming down to the wire,"

Makarov paled, hearing his voice. "We . . enchanted the speaker system so that it would broadcast the opposite of whatever people said into it," Feng sighed. "It was supposed to be a prank. You know, 'Fairy Tail is awesome' becomes 'Fairy Tail isn't awesome', that kind of thing," she explained.

"Well, now you phoenixes have gone and done it," the short man shook his head. Into the microphone.

"Never will you phoenixes go and do anything," the amplified whispers echoed through town.

Below them, Levy whooped. "Of course! The key to Freed's logarithms isn't in any of his titular characters, it's in the numerical precision of his sentence structure! All I have to do is upset that precision!"

"What?" Natsu uncomprehendingly blinked.

"I just shut down the barrier," Levy explained.

"Why didn't you say so?" Natsu grinned. "Come on, Gajeel! Let's split up and find this punk!"

"You said it, Salamander," Gajeel smirked.

~P's E~

"Do you know why Dragon Slayer Magic is special, kid?" Gajeel asked. Grace shook her head.

It was their second training session. Pierce was nearby, keeping a careful eye on proceedings, and Grace was all fired up.

(On the other side of Magnolia, Natsu Dragneel paused in the middle of his lunch and looked up, sensing that somewhere, someone had done something that would make him angry if he knew who, what and where it was.)

"It's because us Dragon Slayers, we aren't entirely human. We have dragon in us. That's how we can use their magic," Gajeel explained. "And being objectively part dragon gives us more that just dragon magic,"

"Uh, like what?" Grace asked. The idea of not being all human didn't bother her; all of Pierce's beasts weren't human, and they were all nice. The ones she had met, anyway. Besides, dragons were powerful, and she wanted to be powerful. So being objectively (whatever that meant) part dragon was awesome. But what did that mean for her?

"For one thing, we have dragon senses. Our noses are sensitive enough to pick up on and differentiate between different people's magic power, as well as other, more conventional smells. Our eyes and ears are pretty damn good, too," Gajeel explained. Grace nodded, taking this on board. "Got it!"

~P's E~

Grace remembered that session two weeks ago, and what it meant. "Why?" she moaned to herself as she walked with Garred.

"Something wrong, kid?" Garred kindly asked.

"I'm a dragon. Not just that, a phoenix dragon. I'm supposed to be strong," Grace sniffed. "So why couldn't I beat him? And now Pierce might be in trouble . . because I wasn't strong enough!"

Garred considered this. "I think you're overestimating yourself," he commented. "Sure, you're a Dragon Slayer. Phoenix's Eye's only Dragon Slayer, in fact. But you're also pretty young. Laxus, he's strong too, but he's also older. He's had more time to grow and train and get even more strong. That was his advantage,"

"So I'll never be able to beat him because of our age gap?" Grace asked, despondent.

"No, that's not it at all. That's just what you have to make up," Garred explained. "Just because you aren't strong enough now, doesn't mean that you never will be,"

Grace thought about this as they entered the street neighbouring South Gate Park, which looked to have already been ravaged by wizards and deserted by civilians. She nodded. "Alright. Now, let's find Sarph!"

"You're looking for an S-Class wizard?" a voice called from the gate of the park. Grace and Garred turned expectantly, and both simultaneously gulped.

Jashie, tapping her foot impatiently, was waiting at the entrance to the grassy area. "I'm sorry, but I think you've found the wrong -" Suddenly, something flickered purple around her leg. She looked down in surprise, to see that her limb had been snared by a tendril of purple fire. "What the hell?" Jashie frowned.

The line went taut. Pulled from her feet, the S-Class Mage was suddenly tripped, and reeled into the park, out of Grace and Garred's line of sight. The two exchanged confused glances. "What was that?" the man frowned.

"It looked kind of like Totomaru's Rainbow Fire magic?" Grace weakly offered.

~P's E~

"I've got a whopper," Totomaru grinned from inside the park, reeling in his rope of purple fire like a fishing line.

Sarph, who was standing next to him, nodded. "Well done,"

"So, these Power Twins, they're tough?" the fire wizard asked.

"Alone, they are fearsome foes. But together, they are unstoppable," Sarph nodded. "Which is why we must separate them before they can be defeated,"

Totomaru nodded in understanding. "I get it. And you're sure this will work?"

The blonde warrior cracked a grin. "The Power Twins have a lot of abilities, but they can't fly,"

It was around them that the reel of fire retracted enough that they could see Jashie, being dragged across the grass by her leg and protesting madly, come around the corner into view. "Now," Sarph grinned, wrapping his arms around Totomaru's waist. His wings appeared, and he lifted off, carrying his teammate with him.

And since Totomaru was holding the flaming fishing line, Jashie was immediately lifted into the air with them, to dangle upside-down beneath them.

The plan was solid. Go high enough into the air that Eishaj couldn't possibly reach them, then Totomaru would attack Jashie enough to whittle her down while she was helpless, before dropping her in the river. Then they would hunt down Eishaj and repeat the performance. It was foolproof.

But, as they cleared the tree line, a white-clad blur leapt from the massive tree in the corner of the park and tackled the two of them out of mid-air. Sarph and Totomaru separated, the assailant clinging to Sarph and flooring him. Totomaru fell to the side, releasing the whip of fire.

Sarph looked up to see Eishaj, his white hair and black robes highlighting his angry expression. He frantically leapt backwards, landing in a crouch and regaining his stance, before dashing over to Totomaru. Jashie and Eishaj did likewise, regrouping.

Sarph swore. "This is exactly the situation I was hoping to avoid," he shook his head.

"I think you've forgotten that I am an S-Class wizard in my own right," Totomaru reminded him.

The knight considered this. "That's right. When you were with Phantom Lord, you were an S-Class wizard, weren't you?"

"Don't delude yourself into believing that that means he has a chance against us," Jashie spat. "Phantom Lord's idea of S-Class is far inferior to the standards our guild sets for S-Class,"

An Archive screen popped up in front of Sarph. He scrutinised the readout, and frowned. "I'm calculating a sixteen percent chance of our victory," he gulped. "I don't like those odds,"

"Well, we can't retreat now. They'd hit us while our backs were turned," Totomaru frowned. "At least we have swords," he smiled, drawing his katana. Sarph unsheathed Solamion, the golden blade twinkling in the midday sunlight.

"Brother, I say we end this immediately," Jashie suggested. She and Eishaj made eye contact, and they nodded. Jashie raised her left hand, and Eishaj his right, and both made contact, as they extended their other hands, clenched in fists.

Sarph gulped. "That's a Unison Raid,"

"Unison Raid? I thought that was a myth," Totomaru frowned.

"Neutralisation Nebula!" Jashie crowed, black energy building around her body. Eishaj did the same, building white energy that sparked where it met Jashie's blackness.

"This is bad," Sarph gulped, holding his sword defensively.

A flash of silver suddenly shot out and wrapped around Jashie's leg, pulling taut. The S-Class wizard's eyes widened, and she lost her balance, falling over. Her hand slipped, the charge died, and the black and white energy evaporated.

Sarph and Totomaru were stunned.

"Why is everyone tripping me today?" Jashie demanded as she recovered, wheeling to face her assailant.

Garrotte, the short beige cat chewing on a piece of wheat beneath his speckled cowboy hat and wielding the length of barbed wire he usually wore around his waist like a whip, smirked. "Ya look like ya's in a spot of trouble. Mind if ah help out?" he shouted to Sarph and Totomaru.

"Not in the slightest," the fire wizard responded. "What do your calculations say about our odds for victory with Garrotte on our side?" he curiously asked Sarph. An Archive screen appeared again, and Sarph cracked a smile. "Sixty-four percent chance of success,"

"I'll take it," Totomaru nodded.

Garrotte grinned. "Barb!" he commanded, cracking his barbed-wire whip. Suddenly, a ring of metal spikes erupted around the Power Twins. The cat took the opportunity to grow into his Battle Form and dash around to join his comrades.

A blast of white energy obliterated the prison. "The three of you think that, by working together, you can beat us. That's cute," Jashie chuckled. Eishaj shook his head, his crown of white spikes swaying in the slight breeze.

Sarph's Aera sprouted on his back, and the golden wizard took off, raising his sword. "Posi-Pulse!" Jashie commented as Eishaj raised his fist and punched the air, sending a ball of white energy at the flying warrior. With a stroke from Solamion, the attack was cleaved in two.

Totomaru and Garrotte ran in separate directions, both wielding their weapons and attempting to surround the twins in a pincer manoeuvre. "Nega-Lectron!" Jashie retorted, creating a ring of black energy to shield herself and her brother.

Fire shot from Totomaru's blade, shooting a streak of energy that arced over the barrier. The wizard couldn't see what happened behind the barrier, but a cry of pain told him that it had found its mark.

The barrier opened, and he was presented with Jashie's scowling face. "I assume you can handle those two for a bit?" she asked her brother, who nodded. "Good. Because I want the pleasure of squashing this Phantom fly all for myself! Nega-Force!" she declared, and black energy built on her legs. Totomaru instantly brought his sword up to block, but the force of the attack drove him backwards. Jashie continued, the force of her attack throwing Totomaru straight out of the park, where she immediately followed in a massive, charged leap.

The barrier died, leaving Eishaj staring down Sarph and Garrotte. "Well, it appears that your partner has left," Sarph observed. "You know you can't beat us by yourself, right?"

Eishaj smiled. And then he spoke. "You know nothing. Positive Charge," he commanded. White energy surged through his body, causing his eyes to glow solid white.

"He spoke?" Garrotte gasped. In all the years that the Power Twins had been in Phoenix's Eye, no one had ever heard Eishaj speak.

"I'm more worried about that spell," Sarph frowned. "Because I have a bad feeling like it evens the odds,"

~P's E~

Totomaru crashlanded in a cake shop.

His hair smeared with pastry, he recovered, climbing off the shelves and checking that his sword was fine. It was, though a bit sticky, and he quickly wiped it off with his red martial arts suit's sleeve.

As he exited the shop, still licking bits of cake off his face, Jashie landed in front of him, glaring him down. "You know, I gotta say, I like your style," Totomaru grinned. "I'm not sure if you planned the cake shop, but either way. It just ensures that my victory is gonna taste sweet," he grinned, pulling a bit of cake off his hair and eating it.

Jashie growled. "I can't stand you,"

"Then would you be willing to sit for me?" Totomaru continued, using his purple solid fire to grab a chair from a nearby cafe and pull it into his hand, before offering it to her.

"I don't know why our Guild Master let you join our guild. Especially after what Phantom Lord tried to do," the black-haired woman growled.

Totomaru dropped the chair. Yellow fire appeared in his empty hand. "I'm sorry about that. But how is what you're doing any better? You're directly bringing harm to the members of your own guild. At least Phantom Lord was attacking someone else," he pointed out.

Jashie spluttered, before balling her fists. "Wha-tha-that's not the - whatever!" she growled. "You, more than anyone else in this weakling guild, deserves death!" She bared her teeth in fury as spikes of black energy appeared in her hands. "Nega-Tana!"

"Not bad. I suppose I should counter with a party trick of my own!" Totomaru grinned, throwing the yellow fire in his hand. It impacted on Jashie's chest, disintegrating without doing any visible damage. "Pathetic," she snorted.

"Is it?" the fire wizard smirked.

It was then that the smell entered Jashie's nostrils. Her eyes widened and she clamped a hand to her nose. "Tha- you're fighting me with bad smells?" she demanded, furious.

"Well, it's appropriate, because you're a real stinker," the wizard mockingly pointed out. "Green fire!" he declared, and green flames formed in his hand.

"Enough games!" Jashie spat, running forwards. Totomaru dashed sideways, throwing the green flame to the ground, where it impacted, splattering a massive puddle of liquid flame across the pavement.

The female twin growled as Totomaru dodged, preparing to turn and charge at him again - then her feet met the green fire. And suddenly they refused to stick to the ground. Her eyes widened and her blades of negative energy vanished, as her shoes slipped. She lost control, falling over and landing on her rear - which subsequently also got coated with slippery green fire - and causing her to slide into the broken window of the cake shop, where a three-layer wedding cake covered in white icing fell off its shelf and landed on her face.

Blue fire appeared in Totomaru's hand and flickered up his sword, which he blasted in a fireball at Jashie before she could react. "They say revenge is a dish best served cold," he quipped, as his enemy stood up, just in time to catch a freezing blast of blue fire with her face. The icy blaze froze the cake strewn through her hair and face to her skin, and, all things considered, she looked hilarious.

"I think it's clear that I have the advantage here. It would seem that our power is equal, but I have the benefit of a weapon," Totomaru explained, raising his sword.

Jashie's eyelid twitched. "You think our power is equal?"

Totomaru suddenly sensed the ethernano on the air intensifying. "What is this?" he frowned.

"Negative Charge!" Jashie shrieked, her body surrounding itself with black energy as her eyes glowed with solid black light.

The wizard thought for a second. He might not be able to beat Jashie alone, so should he regroup with Garrotte and Sarph? No, Sarah had said that the Power Twins were unstoppable together, so he couldn't let them reunite. Meaning that he had to distract Jashie long enough for Sarph and Garrotte to defeat her brother.

Looking at his enemy, body crackling with black power that obliterated the frozen cake clinging to her hair, he realised that that task had just become harder.

 _~P's E~_

 _"Welcome back to Doctor K's Docu-mays!"_

 _"Today we're laying down the cool biz of Totomaru!" he goofily grinned._

 _"Totomaru is a Fire wizard like Natsu Dragneel, but their styles couldn't be more different. Instead of going all-out brute force, Totomaru uses the different applications of his various coloured fires to antagonise his opponent and exhaust them," Kit explained, pointing at a stick figure with Totomaru's hair surrounded by a rainbow of squiggles that vaguely resembled fire._

 _"Now, because, out of all the Element Four, he had the least appearances in canon, only four of his fire colours were shown; normal red fire, stinky yellow fire, cold blue fire, and solid, non-burning purple fire. So the author had to fill in the gaps," Kit shrugged. "Green fire reminded Technow of green goo, so he made it slippery and liquidous,"_

 _Natsu Dragneel suddenly appeared on stage, holding a jug of green fire. He promptly downed it, smacking his lips. "Green fire is like a fire blendie! Me likey!" he shouted._

 _"Technow also decided to add white fire to Totomaru's colour palette, and decided that since white usually represents light, it should be intense fire that blinds people who look at it," Natsu snatched a second jug, containing white fire, and promptly screamed as Kit covered his eyes. "Aargh! I can't see!" The Dragon Slayer frantically gulped it down. "That's better,"_

 _"And orange fire is a sticky fire, like glue!" Kit finished as Natsu produced a third and final jug of flame. He went to drink the orange fire, but blinked as it stuck to his lips. "Omph! Mish mire shmuck mumph mipsh mmemer!" he protested._

 _"I tried to warn you," Kit shrugged as Natsu was yanked off-stage. "Anyway, Totomaru is also the unfortunate subject of Hare's semi-sane affections, even though I think he only has eyes for Fleur," he chuckled._

 _"SAY WHAT?!" Hare erupted, suddenly bursting onto the stage. "How dare you say that?!"_

 _Kit whimpered, seeing the look in her eyes. "Uh, that's all for now, on DK's Ds! Help!" he begged, dashing away._

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **I'll admit it. Boomer got a bit overlooked this arc. But that's only because I don't want him to get spoilt, what with getting an entire story arc devoted to him starting chapter 20.**

 **And Totomaru has a very fun fighting style. ^^ Which does kind of contrast with his personality . . . but he is literally the only person in Phoenix's Eye who is a canon character, so blame Hiro Mashima. XD**

 **Anyhoos. I am considering phasing out DK's Ds. I only really planned it to be for the first ten-ish chapters, but it kind of snowballed . . I'll se how it goes.**

 **Peace!**


	19. The Rising Flame

Chapter 19: The Rising Flame

"Posi-Pulsation!" Eishaj declared, and a shockwaves of white energy burst from his body, knocking into his opponents and throwing them back.

Sarph landed in a crouch. "Archive Entrapment!" he declared, and several Archive screens appeared, surrounding Eishaj, before each bombarded him with a pulse of magic and threw up a cloud of smoke.

"That got 'im!" Garrotte cheered.

But the smoke cleared, revealing Eishaj unharmed. He shook his head disdainfully, before focusing on Sarph and raising his hands. "Posi-mpact!" he shouted.

Nothing viable happened. His two opponents paused and looked around warily. "What's he doing?" Sarph asked, but a sudden shadow obscuring the sun above him made him look up.

Floating above him, suspended by white energy, was an entire house, that had been torn from its place on the street across from the park and levitated to their position by Eishaj. The Energy wizard smirked, and let go.

Garrotte watched, horrified, as the building crushed Sarph, hiding him behind the shaken walls.

"Disappointing," Eishaj rumbled.

The house's front door swung open, and Sarph emerged, glaring at his adversary. "That floor was paper-thin, and Magnolian houses are built to last. I barely felt it," he snorted.

Eishaj raised an eyebrow. "Interesting," he commented.

Sarph didn't hesitate, dashing forwards and preparing to slash with Solamion. A blade of white energy appeared on Eishaj's forearm, and he swung it up in a block.

"Archive!" Sarph shouted as their blades met. An Archive screen appeared in his foe's blind spot and blasted him from behind. Eishaj grunted, but held his stance, the force of the impact between their blades holding Sarph in mid-air.

Then a loop of barbed wire wrapped around his leg and pulled him off-balance. Garrotte grinned as he tripped, falling forwards as his blade vanished, and Sarph brought his sword down. He planned to pause an inch above the man's neck, to convince him to stop, but before he got there, the blade flared with golden light as it made contact with a previously-invisible shell of white energy surrounding him. Suddenly, the shell shattered. Sarph immediately recognised the effect as the in-built Wave enchantments on the sword dispelling a spell. This, in conjunction with the fact that Eishaj suddenly slumped, exhausted, to the ground, led him to believe that the sword had destroyed Eishaj's Positive Charge.

"Not so tough after all, eh?" Garrotte snorted.

"Eh. His bark was worse than his bite," Sarph shrugged. "Now, I wonder where Totomaru went with his sister?"

The two S-Class wizards exchanged a glance. "Ya think they're makin' out?" Garrotte chuckled.

~P's E~

"DIE!" Jashie shrieked, launching into the air and bringing a spear of black energy down towards Totomaru's head. The swordsman frantically back-pedalled, and white fire ran up his blade. "Radiant fire!" he commanded, shielding his eyes with a free hand. Jashie looked up, curious, as his sword, cloaked in white flame, suddenly shone with blinding light, searing her retinas and rendering her temporarily blind.

"That should buy me a few seconds," Totomaru muttered as the intense light died. But suddenly a black spear narrowly missed his heart, and he turned to see Jashie making blind stabs in his general direction. "Time to leave. Green fire," he snapped, and green flames coated his feet. He retreated, using his slippery green shoes like rollerblades.

Rubbing her eyes, Jashie managed to restore her sight, just in time to see Totomaru dashing away. "Oh no you don't! Nega-Neon!" she shrieked, throwing balls of black energy in his direction. The fire wizard darted back and forth, avoiding the blasts that peppered the area around him.

"You won't escape! Nega-Nexus!" Jashie shrieked, stamping her foot as dramatically as possible, and a grid of black energy flared into being at the far end of the alleyway. Totomaru frantically halted himself, inches away from the crackling black energy. "Shit," He turned, looking at the advancing Energy wizard.

"No escape!" Jashie crowed. "Unless you can climb walls, this is where you die!" she maniacally cackled.

"Actually," Totomaru grinned, sheathing his katana. With a massive leap, he flung himself towards the wall of the building, and declared; "Orange fire!" Balls of orange flame appeared in his hands and feet, and he clung to the wall like a spider, the adhesive orange flame holding him in place. He climbed upwards, and Jashie watched him make his escape in fury. "No," she hissed. "No! You won't escape!" she shrieked, a huge black magic circle erupting from the ground around her. "Negative Nextreme! Come, Negogre!" A massive, hulking shape, made entirely of black energy, erupted from the ground, forming a huge troll-like monster that stood four storeys tall and brandished a thick club. Negogre roared, Jashie perched on its head and cackling maniacally.

Totomaru, perched on a rooftop, stared up at her. "Oh, shit," he repeated.

~P's E~

Sarph and Garrotte stared up at the ogre, menacing the tiny speck of Totomaru on the rooftop, in surprise. "Well, whaddya know. Ya think he could do that?" the cat asked, amazed, gesturing at the unconscious Eishaj.

"No, I think the Power Twins are a double bluff," Sarph shook his head. "They both make out like Eishaj is the powerful one between them, because he's more intimidating. But, in reality, Jashie is the stronger twin,"

"Shucks," Garrotte gulped.

"He needs help. Let's go,"

~P's E~

Totomaru frantically leapt away from his aggressor as the ogre's club slammed into the roof. He landed on the next building along, and ran along the triangular tapers of Magnolia's buildings as Jashie pursued. "You can't keep this up forever!" she shouted. "You're going to run out of alleyway soon!"

It was true. Even as he ran, Totomaru was approaching the end of the street, which led into a main throughfare. Too wide to jump across. His eyes widened and he cast around, searching for a plan.

His eyes alit on a steeple to his left, at the end of the line of houses parallel to his. It reached high above the other houses nearby, and was crowned by a tall weathervane. Could it work?

Negogre's club smashed into the building he had been standing on seconds before, and he nodded to himself. It would work. Probably.

A lasso of purple fire appeared in his hand, and he threw it, the magical rope arcing into the air. It snagged around the weather vane, right as he ran out of roof - and jumped.

Jashie paused, her magical golem slowing down. What was Totomaru doing?

Clinging to his magical rope, the fire wizard soared through the air, wind ripping at his white fohawk; and he swung in a giant circle over the thoroughfare. Ninety degrees . . . one-thirty-five - uh-oh. The building opposite the one he had jumped off was looming up on him.

Still grasping his flaming lasso with one hand, Totomaru pointed his other downwards with the palm open and launched a blast of ordinary red fire. The recoil propelled him upwards, and he grinned as he barely - just barely - cleared the rooftop, continuing the massive swing around the tower. His feet met the roof, and he pushed off again, building up momentum.

Jashie had paused at the end of the street, looking around. She peered past the tower, where Totomaru had vanished. "Where did he go?"

And now the swinging wizard, having completed an entire rotation, was coming up on his foe. Totomaru grinned, and let the lasso go, the parabola of his momentum lifting him into the air. And giving him the perfect point from which to launch a final attack.

Flickering flames of all seven colours surrounded him in a rainbow aura, white, red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple fires all merging and rippling into one powerful force. "Rainbow Fire!" Totomaru shouted, unleashing all his flames in one powerful, multicoloured blast.

Jashie turned, just in time to see her bright and colourful demise. "Oh no,"

The blast impacted, generating an explosion that dazed Jashie, and in the process sent up a flash of light to the clouds. Seconds later, a pillar of flaming rainbow energy that could be seen for miles around burst from the sky, swirling downwards and smashing into its target with incredible destructive force.

Jashie, her magical golem dissipated, fell to the ground, completely out of it. Totomaru landed, a hundred metres away, in a crouch. "I really hope that finished her off," he wheezed. "Because I am _cooked_ ,"

~P's E~

It was around now that Natsu was confronting Laxus. Erza had gone to take out the Thunder Palace, and Mystogan had vanished period. Just Natsu and Laxus . . . and an unconscious Phoenix's Eye wizard half-buried in the rubble.

It was this blond Beast Tamer that Natsu was now crouched over, trying to rouse. Laxus, frowning, was waiting impatiently. He just wanted to fight, but knew it would be unfair if he attacked before Natsu was ready. Then he wouldn't have earned the victory.

This was the scene that Pierce Blastreyne woke up to, staring a salmon-haired Dragon Slayer in the face. "What happened?" he blearily asked.

"You alright? Laxus clocked you good," Natsu noted.

"Yeah, he kinda did," Pierce nodded, slowly sitting up. "You beat him?"

"Eh, not quite yet," Natsu admitted, and the two boys looked over to where Laxus was impatiently tapping his foot. "I just didn't want you to get caught in the cross-fire when we duke it out,"

"Me, get caught in the cross-fire? No way," Pierce snorted, spotting his flute nearby and snatching it up as he stood. "After all, you can't get caught in the cross-fire, when you're one of the ones firing!" he declared, wheeling to face Laxus. "I know this is your fight, and I'm sorry to muscle in on it. But that guy hurt Grace, and like hell I'm gonna let him get away with it," Pierce snapped.

Natsu looked at him, his determined expression, and grinned. "Alright! Let's take him together!"

"Great. And whoever gets knocked out by Laxus first owes the other lunch, okay?" Pierce suggested with a smile. The Dragon Slayer returned the expression with fangs bared. "A good fight and free food? I like the way your guild thinks!"

"So, the little bird thinks it can still fly?" Laxus asked, smiling darkly. "Alright. I'll take you both on, the best of Fairy Tail AND Phoenix's Eye, and prove that I'm stronger than both guilds put together!"

"No way, we're taking you down!" Natsu retorted, before pausing and looking at Pierce. "Wait; 'Phoenix's Eye'?"

"Yes, that is the name of our guild," Pierce testily responded.

"Huh. That makes a lot more sense than 'Phoney's Pie'," the Dragon Slayer noted, and Pierce glared at him. "Is that really what you thought our guild was called?!" he demanded.

"You're funny," Laxus snorted. "Unfortunately, in the new Fairy Tail," Lightning burst into being in his hands, and he lunged forwards. "There won't be any room for clowns!"

Natsu and Pierce separated. Laxus went after Natsu, and Pierce danced away, clutching his flute. "I hope everyone in there's feeling better!" he told the flute, before playing a honeyed tune. Victoria emerged, wings buzzing, and Pierce climbed onto her back. "Take us up. We need to get above the fight," he commanded; and the queen bee obediently lifted off, wings blurring.

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" Natsu shouted, slamming a flaming punch towards Laxus, who blocked with one hand and launched a bolt of lightning into the air with the other. It hit Victoria in the chest, and she squeaked, falling to the ground. Pierce frantically recalled her before she could crash, and he landed in a crouch.

Suddenly, Laxus leapt back from his clash with Natsu and punched Pierce in the face, sending him skidding backwards. "Don't think you can win a melee fight with ranged attacks!" he commanded.

"You want a melee?" Pierce asked. "I think I know just the thing!" With a quick tune, he summoned Kit, and the white yokai appeared. He promptly scrambled backwards, intimidated by Laxus. "You wanna use that?" he asked, looking at Pierce, who nodded as his flute vanished into Requip space. "Alright!" the fox shouted, launching himself into Pierce's chest.

"What the hell?" Laxus gasped as the Yokai Unison overtook Pierce, fangs and claws sharpening, hair lengthening into a massive white mane; and Kit grinned, baring his claws. "That's a pretty neat trick," the lightning wizard nodded, returning to the assault. Kit dodged, using his agility to his advantage, dodging and weaving around the blows and launching a few of his own. But Laxus, despite being slower, was still strong and fast, and occasionally one of his blows connected, dealing severe damage. Eventually Kit realised that he wasn't gaining any ground, and leapt away, landing near the recovering Natsu. "Let's take him together. No more 1-v-1,"

"Got it," Natsu agreed, and both rushed forwards. Laxus came to meet them, fending both assailants off at once, and shrugging off the blows that did connect. Finally, he grasped the massive mane of Kit/Pierce's hair and pulled him off-balance, throwing him into Natsu. Both teenagers crashed backwards.

"One more hit, and the fusion'll shut off," Kit told Natsu, gesturing at the merged state. He could feel the gut pain that warned him he was on the brink of running dry. The Dragon Slayer nodded. "Save your strength. I can handle him for a bit while you get your breath,"

Nodding, Kit cancelled the Unison, and Pierce fell back, the spectral fox landing in his lap. Natsu got up, and stared Laxus down. "Come at me!" he shouted.

"Fine," Laxus cricked his neck. "You want me to get serious? Alright,"

'Get serious?' Pierce paled.

"Lightning Dragon's Breakdown Fist!" Laxus shouted, shedding his coat and revealing the tattoos running down the side of his chest, before launching forward.

"You're a Dragon Slayer?" Natsu gasped, frantically blocking. "But no way you got raised by a dragon!"

"No," Pierce shook his head, straightening up as Natsu frantically defended. "He's . . got a Dragon Lacrima inside him,"

Both Dragon Slayers paused, hearing this. Laxus nodded, fingering the scar under his eye. "That's true. How did you -?" He paused. "Phoenix's Eye's baby dragon. Of course,"

"Yeah. Grace was experimented on by a gang of cultists, and had a Dragon Lacrima implanted in her body, next to her heart," Pierce explained, clutching his flute. "She went through hell for their 'research'," he growled, his mind rapidly coming to a conclusion. "So why the hell do you get to benefit from the same stuff?"

Laxus looked at Pierce, and his eyes widened at the Tamer's furious expression. "Whoa, it's not how you think -"

"Shut up!" With a flash of light, Pierce Requipped his flute, and charged forwards, playing a furious tune. Laxus was thrown back amid a torrent of flame as Raya emerged, the incensed phoenix engulfing their enemy in fire. "You were working with those bastards, weren't you? You ruined her life, for what? Stronger magic?!"

Natsu watched the angry Tamer and his partner in shock, and eyed Laxus in confusion and revulsion. "Did he really do something like that?"

"Shut up!" Laxus shouted, and, with a massive blast of electricity, Pierce and Raya were blown away.

"Look, I had nothing to do with whatever happened to your baby dragon," Laxus gruffly snorted. "I have a Dragon Lacrima inside me because my dad implanted it there. Maybe he had something to do with the cultist guys, I dunno. But I didn't do anything to your baby dragon,"

"You think he's lying?" Raya asked Pierce as they picked themselves up. "Could be," he shrugged, mistrusting the other blond.

"Does it matter?" Natsu immediately asked them. "We're gonna kick his ass either way. Who cares whether we need one extra reason to do it?"

Pierce grinned. "I guess you're right,"

"I can't believe that you still think you can beat me," Laxus snorted. "Even if you do work together, it's hopeless,"

"What, you think that if you say it enough, you can convince yourself?" Pierce smirked.

Laxus tched. "Whatever,"

"I don't have much left in me," Pierce quietly admitted to Natsu.

"Me neither. But I've got an easy way to recharge," the Dragon Slayer grinned. "That bird breathes fire, right?" he asked, gesturing to Raya.

"Yup," his friend nodded.

"Get her to give me a massive blast, right in the face," Natsu commanded.

"What?" Pierce blinked, but Raya eagerly obliged, blasting a stream of flame at their comrade.

And, opening his mouth wide, Natsu sucked every cubic centimetre of it up in a funnel. 'Of course, that's right,' Pierce realised. 'Dragon Slayers can eat their own element to power themselves up,' Realising what wa sharpening, Raya redoubled the intensity of her flame.

"Okay," the Tamer grinned. "I'll trust you to finish this fight," And, causing his remaining magic power to blossom in his hands, he pressed them to Raya's neck, enhancing her flaming breath. Natsu's eyes widened, seeing the flame he was ingesting redouble in intensity, and he swallowed it all, strengthening his abilities far beyond their normal capacity.

"Damn," he commented. "That's some really good fire. Never tasted anything quite like that,"

"Phoenix flames. Nothing else like it," Pierce shrugged, and Rays smiled through her beak. "Go make our guilds proud," he commanded. The boy and bird leant on each other for support as Natsu blazed away. "I'm all fired up now!" he boisterously declared.

"Does this mean you lose the bet?" Raya cheekily asked, and Pierce snorted. "The bet was whoever gets knocked out first. I'm still standing,"

"Finally. Lightning Dragon's Roar!" Laxus shouted, blasting a wave of lightning at the other Dragon Slayer, but Natsu pushed through it, his fist igniting as he shouted "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" The blow threw Laxus into the air, sending him crashing through the roof. Natsu leapt after him, continuing the assault with a "Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!"

The two combatants vanished from Pierce and Raya's view, and the Phoenix and the phoenix watched them go. "You think he can win?" Raya asked.

"I think we've still got some more juice in the tank," Pierce replied. "Come on," he commanded, carefully climbing into the firebird's back. Raya nodded, and, spreading her wings, took off, blowing the hole Natsu had just created even larger, before carefully angling her wings to fit.

The two erupted from the hole, narrowly avoiding a blast of fire and lightning. "Whaddya think?" Pierce asked. "Solar Blast?"

Raya halted her upwards momentum directly between the combatants and the sun. "Solar Blast!" she agreed, drawing power from the sun to build a massive charge of golden flame in her beak, before releasing it in the form of a massive fireball, like a miniature sun, that engulfed the two Dragon Slayers before detonating.

Laxus, blackened and burnt, but still standing, laughed. "Nope, not yet!" he shouted at the Phoenixes, before his case returned to Natsu, who looked like whatever parts of the explosion hadn't hit Laxus, he had eaten. "Alright," he grinned, fangs bared and eyes glowing with the light of phoenix fire. "Dragon Slayer's Secret Art," he hissed.

"What?" Laxus gulped, before immediately readying an attack, knowing that the fight was drawing to a close.

"Flame Lotus: Exploding FLAME BLADE!" Natsu roared, massive bursts of fire engulfing him and his opponent.

"Lightning Dragon's Heavenward Halberd!" Laxus retorted, generating massive amounts of lightning in response.

There was a massive blast of electricity and flame, the recoil of which blew Pierce and Raya away. Already exhausted, Raya just barely managed to hold her wings aloft enough to glide down to the Cathedral roof, where Natsu and Laxus were both lying, unconscious, several feet away from each other. The phoenix landed and immediately fell over, letting sleep claim her, and Pierce rolled off her back, also succumbing to the grip of unconsciousness.

Less than a minute later, the combined forces of Fairy Tail and Phoenix's Eye's attacks blew all five hundred of the Thunder Palace lacrima out of the sky.

~P's E~

"I'm glad things are finally back on track," Pierce commented to Tyria.

"Yeah . . Are you sure you should be up and moving around?" the technology wizard asked, concerned.

"I'm fine. Just exhaustion. And this tea really helps," Pierce admitted, sipping from a cup that had been provided by Sensho Wu, Phoenix's Eye's resident Tea Wizard, and the guild's most skilled medic. (Poor Sensho had been run ragged after the Battle of Fairies and Phoenixes.)

"I can tell," Tyria nodded, a tad envious.

"Besides, it isn't like this is a very strenuous task," Pierce shrugged, making a minor correction to the tiller.

The Garuda was hovering above Magnolia, carrying a massive shape that was made of paper and plastic, light enough to not weigh the airship down, but the darkness and their cargo's colouration effectively veiled the airship from view. Had anyone looked up, they might have noticed the night sky above them was suspiciously devoid of stars, but on the night of the Magnolia Harvest Festival, no one was looking anywhere but at the procession of floats manned by Fairy Tail.

"Are we in position yet?" Pierce called into the Lacrima Boomer had enchanted with Sound Transfer Magic.

Hare, perched in the cover and keeping lookout, heard Pierce's voice from the matching lacrima next to her. "A little bit to the right, and full ahead," she commanded.

Pierce made the adjustments to the tiller, and Hare gleefully reported; "Perfect! Bombs away!" With that, the Speed Wizard struck a match, throwing it into the air, before using her magic to blur away.

The match fell to the ground and immediately ignited the tar-coated metal, which rapidly spread. Hare, though, effortlessly outran the flames even as they engulfed the cover, arriving on the deck moments later. "Now we just sit back and wait,"

Artorias, Boomer and Sarph were perched in the bow, positioned to repel any fairies who would mess with their plan. However; this also gave them the perfect vantage point to watch the carnage.

And, far below, the framework, metal coated by tar, burst into life, creating the visage of a huge, flaming phoenix hovering above the parade, seemingly gliding of its own volition. It was a spectacle to behold, and Team Pierce (plus Artorias) was glad to be responsible for it . . especially when the true extent of their design was revealed.

The flaming tar began to drip.

Tiny dollops of fire fell from the great bird, bouncing harmlessly off the terracotta roofs of the houses. However, where they met the wood and fabric used to build the parade floats, they instantly caught alight. Flames randomly spread throughout the entire parade and the surrounding area, sending the crowd scattering in search of cover. One by one, the collapsing floats ground to a halt. Boomer watched with momentary concern as Juvia spread a sheet of water above her to protect her float, but it was in vain, as the float promptly ran into the one before it, already a flaming wreck, and sent the rainwoman running with a squeal.

The parade was in conflagration as the great phoenix, beginning to burn out by now, pulled away and rose into the air, carrying seven laughing Phoenix's Eye wizards with it.

And, watching from the crowd, Feng laughed. "We set the sky on fire tonight, everyone! Phoenix's Eye forever!"

 _~P's E~_

 _"Welcome back to DK's Ds!" Kit cheered. "Great chapter today, folks!"_

 _"Okay, pertinent topics, pertinent topics," The yokai frantically shuffled through a sheaf of papers._

 _Suddenly a phone rang, and Kit answered it, balancing it on his shoulder. "Hello? There was muttered garbling on the end of the line, and Kit nodded. "Oh yeah? Yeah, great! One more chapter, eh?" He hung up, before turning back to the camera with a grin. "Alright, apparently we just got a review stating that at least some people believe the Power Twins use a variant of electricity magic," He shook his head. "This is not the case at all, and I have been told to use this episode of DK's Ds to correct this assumption,"_

 _"The Power Twins use Energy magic, which is based on the manipulation of protons, if you use the Positive variant like Eishaj, and electrons, in Jashie's Negative version. This is a rarely seen kind of magic, not because it's a Lost or Forbidden Magic, but because it's very powerful, but also very difficult to use. The user's body will constantly take in and generate either positive or negative energy, and will require an equal and opposite charge to ground themselves regularly. The only safe way to use Energy magic like this is if two people who are closely connected, say, twins, each learn one of the two disciplines. That way, their power grows together, and can be used to regularly ground each other. This is why the Power Twins are rarely separated, because if they stay apart for too long, they'll begin to suffer a magical buildup that, if not dispersed in time, could kill them both," Kit gulped, gesturing at a black stick figure and a white stick figure having a high-five._

 _"But the specifics of Energy magic are a lot more interesting. It works by taking in magnetic energy, either positive or negative, and adding them to an internal supply within the user's body. They then use this internal subatomic magnetism generated to manipulate protons or electrons and condense them, building up semi-solid objects made of pure positive or negative energy. But, because magnetic energy doesn't grow on trees, the users' bodies also generate this energy. This is also one of the reasons that the Power Twins are such strong wizards; the aspects of their magic that attempt to take in magnetic energy also result in taking ethernano in from the air at a more rapid rate than normal wizards. Therefore, they can store more power than and recharge faster than wizards of other disciplines of magic. It's an advantage that makes all the difference, and indeed was one of the reasons they made S-Class,"_

 _"Another interesting thing to note is that, due to the very nature of their magic, the Power Twins are completely equally matched when compared to one another," Kit commented. "No matter what they let Sarph think. Completely equally matched. Think about that for a second," he winked._

 _There was a moment's pause. "Get it?" the white yokai grinned. "Eishaj was holding back. Now, why exactly did he do that? Heh. That is the question I leave you with, right here, on D-Kit's D-taries on P-nix's," Kit paused. "Uh . . . E-ye," he finished lamely._

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **Best OC Maker, NO. The Power Twins use Energy magic, a kind which is completely separate to lightning/electricity. I tried to make that clear. Guess I didn't manage it.**

 **Anyway. God, I am sorry for the delay (especially since this is the final chapter of the arc), something went wrong with my document submitter, and it only just started working again. What a pain. -,- But there's a silver lining; I have built up such a MASSIVE chapter buffer (seriously, I'm up to Chapter 36 as I post this and going strong!) that, for the first time in my life, I can maintain a weekly update schedule for the foreseeable future! So, from now on, you can expect an update every Sunday for at least four months. Peace!**


	20. The Sound of Speed

Chapter 20: The Sound of Speed

"So, I hear Lorus is sticking around," Tyria commented at lunch the next day.

"Yeah. Master ruled that he was roped into the whole affair by the Power Twins, and since Makarov decided to be lenient with Bixlow, Evergreen and Freed, she thought that doing anything less would make her look bad. But Lorus is definitely in disgrace," Pierce shrugged.

"And the Twins?"

Pierce just shook his head and deferred to Artorias, who was seated at their table, next to Tyria. "Master could have forgiven them, but the city's surveillance lacrima caught the battle between Jashie and Totomaru. What she did there went beyond a power play, or a tournament. She was actually trying to kill him," the blood wizard shook his head. "And you know the rules,"

"Anyone who would hurt their own guild cannot be allowed to remain in the guild," Pierce nodded. Tyria did the same, frowning.

"Eishaj could have stayed, but the Power Twins are rarely, if ever, separated. When he heard Jashie wasn't allowed to remain, he promptly quit," Artorias finished.

"I see," Tyria nodded. "Chalk one up for family, I guess,"

Grace, who had gone to get lunch, returned and sat next to Pierce, as usual, and the Tamer contentedly tousled her hair. "So, it's all good?" the young Dragon Slayer asked.

"For now," Artorias shrugged.

Pierce looked around. "Hey, has anyone seen Boomer?" he asked.

"No," Tyria frowned. "Strange, he's usually here by now,"

"Did he take a job?" Grace suggested.

"Nope!" Sarah, who had apparently been eavesdropping, informed them from the nearby bar. "All jobs go through me and Fernando. I'd have noticed if he was on a job,"

"Weird," Tyria frowned.

"I'm sure he's fine," Grace shrugged.

"Yeah. Boomer can take care of himself," Artorias agreed.

All four of the table's occupants pointedly ignored the brawl going on behind them.

~P's E~

Boomer stared at the book of dark magic on his shelf. "It's time," he nodded, shouldering his boombox, before donning a pair of gloves and gingerly picking up the book. Dark tendrils of evil magic tried to reach him, but the gloves did their job and none touched his skin.

With that, he stepped through the door that led into his shack's second, larger room, and gazed at the contents.

Furniture and shelves, and all manner of debris as well, had been pushed aside, to make room for the room's major occupant, and Boomer lovingly caressed the sleek metal planes of the white/orange framework. The magicmobile was triangular, mostly white but with orange stripes and grey circles denoting the positions of speakers. There were a lot of grey circles, and a framework mounted behind the driver's seat carried two large black speakers, with another pair mounted on either side. The pointed front of the vehicle segwayed into a single black metal wheel, connected directly to the driver's seat, which in turn was encased by orange glass, with a hole in the top. Twin exhaust pipes burst out of the rear, and two more large metal wheels were attached nearby, on either side. Stencilled on the flank were the words, in bold capitals; "Sonic Boom".

Spotting his boombox into a carefully-designed port, and dropping the book into the vehicle's boot, Boomer pulled the side door open and slid into the driver's seat. As he did, he flashed back to one of his childhood's most vivid memories.

~P's E~

"You think you can keep up with me?" an electric blue shape demanded, floating in the air above him.

Panting, already exhausted from the chase, younger Boomer nodded. "I won't stop chasing you! Not ever!" he wheezed.

The shape cackled. "That'a funny, kid. But you'll never be fast enough to catch an air demon! Never!"

~P's E~

"Maybe now, I'll be fast enough," Boomer breathed. He strapped the SE plug to he wrist, gunned the Sonic Boom's engine, and opened the newly-installed garage doors, flooring the accelerator and rocketing out of his house. "Time to go,"

~P's E~

"So, what's Alvarez like?" Grace asked Tyria.

"Alvarez?" the wizard parroted.

"You know, your homeland," Grace clarified.

"Oh," Tyria chuckled, before shaking her head as a note of anger crept into her tone. "Close, but not quite. I'm from a place called Electria, to the northeast," she explained.

"But Electria is part of the Alvarez Empire," Artorias pointed out with a frown.

"Yeah," Tyria nodded, a glum look crossing her features. "That's why I left,"

"Why would your country joining an empire mean you had to leave?" Pierce frowned.

"Join?" Tyria repeated again, frowning. "We didn't join anything. Electria's always been independent," she retorted.

"True," Artorias agreed. "Before it joined Alvarez four years ago, Electria's been independent for three hundred years,"

"But if Electria didn't join these Alvarez guys, then . ." Grace trailed off, seeing the dark look on Tyria's face. "It was an invasion," she growled. "Like nothing we'd ever seen. They marched in and captured Teslon in five days flat. Their wizards," the dark-skinned girl shivered, her electric blue ponytail twitching. "They were like nothing we'd ever seen,"

Pierce reached over and placed his hand on hers. She looked up, and saw the Tamer smile. "It wasn't so bad at first. The taxes got a bit bigger, and that was it. But then they started attacking our schools,"

"The schools?" Grace frowned.

"Yes. Electria is known as being foremost in the world in regards to magical and technological advancements. It's a place where strength is measured in terms of knowledge and intelligence, not combat prowess and magical power," Artorias supplied.

"Yeah. And Alvarez decided that 'such immaterial efforts are not conducive to furthering the progression of the Alvarez Empire'," Tyria huffed in a mocking tone. "They told us, myself included as I was an assistant to one of the leading scholars in Electria at the time, to turn all our efforts to strengthening our military, which of course becomes their military, and any university who complains would be destroyed. They outlawed our entire way of life,"

"And that's when you left?" Pierce asked, but again, his teammate shook her head. "No. That's when we wizard scholars set up an underground network to continue our studies," Tyria reminisced. "But we got found out, and Alvarez started hunting us down. That was when my master sent me to Fiore for my own safety,"

"And you became a bandit to get by," Pierce finished.

"Yeah," Tyria nodded. "So," she hurriedly changed the subject. "Me and Pierce have shared our life stories, and we all know Grace's,"

"Uh, except me," Grace pointed out. She was aware that her memories had been blocked, and understood that it was for her own good, but was still curious about the events she had forgotten.

"Anyway," the TechType wizard deflected the topic again. "What about you, Artorias? Do you have any skeletons in the closet?"

The S-Class wizard paused, his eyes widening a fraction as memories flashed through his mind.

 _Unimaginable pain . . cultists trying to use him as a sacrifice to their god . . he screamed, screamed until there was no voice left in him . . so much blood. So much blood everywhere . . and he had no choice but to use it . . ._

"No," he shook his head. "No skeletons in my closet whatsoever,"

Tyria nodded, not quite believing him. "Alright," she commented. "What about Hare and Boomer?"

Pierce drew breath, but with a blur Hare suddenly appeared, crouched on their table and glaring at all four of them. Shocked, Grace recoiled.

"No one says anything about my past. Ever," she hissed. And, with that, she vanished, just as rapidly.

"Well, that happened," Tyria raised her eyebrows in surprise.

"What about Boomer?" Grace suggested, looking up at Pierce. The Tamer shrugged. "No idea. He turned up at the guild one day and asked to join. He's never said a word about his history,"

"Oh," The two girls digested this. "Well, now I'm curious," the foreign wizard pouted. Absent-mindedly, Pierce noted that she was really cute when she pouted.

"Me too," Grace agreed.

"You wanna go find out?" Tyria immediately asked.

"Uh," The Dragon Slayer was hesitant, but a nod from Pierce dispelled her doubt. "Sure, I guess. Do you know where he lives?"

The dark-skinned girl fingered her chin in thought. "Come to think of it, no,"

"You two come with me," Pierce suggested, standing up. "I'll show you," His gaze turned to Artorias. "You want to come?"

"No, thank you. No offence intended, but I think that there are better things to occupy my time than badgering Boomer about his past," the redhead shrugged.

"Heh, your loss," Tyria chuckled, as Pierce led the two girls out of the guild hall. "Bye!"

~P's E~

Pierce led the way to Boomer's shack. "That's strange," he noted as soon as the building appeared in the distance. "It's quiet,"

"That's not a bad thing," Grace piped up. The little girl adored nature, and relished being in the outdoors. "The animals are so much more friendly when it's quiet," she grinned, scooping up a squirrel and trying to stroke it. The rodent promptly leapt out of her hand, but she was undeterred.

"No, you don't get it. We're within earshot of _Boomer's house_. And it's _quiet_ ," Pierce clarified. Tyria instantly realised what he meant, and it only took Grace a few seconds to catch on.

Immediately, all three wizards broke into a run. Space rippled around Grace's hands, and suddenly the Reality Dragon Slayer was several metres ahead of the other two. Pierce smiled as she repeated the trick, rapidly gaining a lead. "She's been practising," he proudly nodded.

"More of that reality bending stuff?" Tyria asked, and Pierce nodded. "Yeah. She can bend space anywhere within her line of sight now, but things get complicated when she tries to pass anything other than her own body through the bent space,"

"But two weeks ago, she teleported Totomaru," Tyria frowned.

"It's more of a mental thing than a problem with her magic," Pierce clarified. "She doesn't yet trust herself to move other people or objects,"

"Why not?" his teammate asked, and Pierce winced. "What do you think would happen if she bent space, then un-bent it as someone was halfway inside and halfway outside the bent reality?"

Tyria considered this for a second, and gulped. "Oh,"

"Yeah," Pierce shrugged.

By now, they had caught up with Grace, standing just outside Boomer's house. The greenette had already been knocking. "It's unlocked, but nobody's answered," she shivered.

Pierce stepped in front of her and shoved the door open. "Oi, Boomer? You here?"

Silence.

"Come on, let's find him," he declared. "Tyria, you check the bedroom. Me and Grace will check the living room,"

The living room was in chaos, with everything pushed aside to make a big,

empty space in the middle. As Tyria vanished into the bedroom, Pierce and Grace scoured the remains. "It doesn't look like there was a fight," the girl shrugged.

"No, more like he was making room for something," Pierce agreed. "But what?"

As if on cue, Tyria's voice came from the other room. "Guys? You should take a look at this," Pierce and Grace immediately made for the door, finding Tyria holding a piece of paper. She held it up for them to read, and Pierce took it, guessing (correctly) that it wasn't something for Grace's eyes.

 _To whomever may find this (I hope it's Pierce. He was my best friend in the guild); this is the last will and testament of Emanuel "Boomer" Arestrad. In the likely event that I do not return alive, well, do what you want with my stuff. I don't really care. It'll probably be at least a few days until this note is discovered, so most of the food will probably go off, and I took all my weapons with me, so those aren't a concern. Actually, now that I think about it, I don't own all that much . ._ The note prattled on in this manner for a while, and Pierce impatiently tapped his foot as he read.

But finally, it reached an important part; _I have gone to confront a demon from my past. This is something I need to do, and something I will do, even if it costs me my life. If any of my friends want to recover my remains for burial, I am currently headed for the location of Regykraeon's most common sighting; the ghost town of Ghoulia. It should be possible to pick up my trail from there, especially if Pierce calls his wolf to help track me._

 _It's been fun, and I hate to draw it to an end, but my time has come. Goodbye from Boomer, Phoenix's Eye._

 _(P.S. Also, on the off chance I actually live through this and make it home, disregard this entire note.)_

Pierce crumpled the paper. "What the hell is that guy thinking?"

"We're going after him, aren't we?" Tyria asked, and the blonde nodded. "He can't have gotten far. We saw him at the parade last night, and after yesterday, I don't think any of us were doing anything but sleeping last night,"

"What's going on?" Grace whined.

"Boomer's decided to go do something stupid. And now it's up to us to rescue him," Pierce clarified, and the Dragon Slayer nodded.

"But Ghoulia? That place is remote, nowhere near any train stations," Tyria pointed out. "We can't walk,"

"We'll take the Garuda. I'm sure Master will approve," Pierce declared.

~P's E~

And she did. It took Master Feng four seconds to scan the note, three more to command Sarph to accompany them, and another three to give them permission to take the guild's airship.

Unfortunately, the time made up by the Master's efficiency was lost thrice over as they tried in vain to convince Hare to accompany them. In the end, Sarph had to bodily lift her and drag her onto the Garuda.

So it was that the five guild wizards, plus Kit to drive the airship, took off, making west, for the abandoned town of Ghoulia.

"So, what's the story behind Ghoulia?" Tyria queried. Pierce shrugged. All he knew was that the place was creepy.

"One second," Sarph replied, bringing up his Archive. "Alright . . Ghoulia was a normal town six years ago, but there was some kind of dark magic catastrophe. There were no survivors, and whatever happened left no clues. There wasn't even any damage to the buildings, but in the span of a single night, every living thing in the village vanished without a trace, so," He shrugged. "The Council declared the area off-limits and forgot about it. It's been a ghost town for the last six years,"

A sudden thought struck Tyria. "Hey, when did Boomer join the guild?"

"Five years ago, why?" Pierce replied. The tech wizard shrugged. "Oh, it's nothing. I just thought, maybe Boomer was a resident of Ghoulia who survived the disaster and joined the guild, but if there's a gap of an entire year between the disaster and his arrival, I guess that can't be it,"

"Bleh. With a name like 'Ghoulia', they were probably a town secretly full of dark wizards. They deserved whatever happened," Hare snorted.

"That's not very nice," Grace promptly reproached the sulking Speed wizard, and Hare snorted, adjusting her green kimono. "I don't care,"

"Why not? Why are you in a bad mood?" Grace frowned, placing her hands on her hips and trying to look stern. "It's not like you were doing anything when we pulled you away,"

"For your information, I had a very busy day planned, filled with watching Totomaru drink piña coladas and keeping that insufferable mute Love Rival away from him," the Speed wizard snapped.

"In that case, we did you a favour," Tyria off-handedly commented.

"That skank Fleur is probably chatting him up right now, worming her way into his heart. The heart which belongs to me!" Hare growled to herself.

"By the sounds of things, we also did Totomaru a favour," Sarph noted with a small grin.

"Anyway, why would Boomer go to a place like Ghoulia? What's he looking for?" Pierce wondered out loud.

"The note mentioned something about something called 'Regykraeon'," Tyria recalled. She looked st Sarph, but the Archive wizard was already running a search. Finally, he shrugged. "I got nothing. There's no mention of a 'Regykraeon' anywhere in my Archive system,"

"Aww, man," Tyria sighed.

"Anyway. Kit, how long's the travel time?" Pierce called. "We'll be there in about half an hour," the yokai's voice called from . . . somewhere. The source was difficult to pinpoint.

~P's E~

At around the same time, the Sonic Boom shredded along the main road to Ghoulia. Even though the magicmobile was a lot faster than the Garuda, Boomer had been forced to take a less direct route, allowing the airship to close the gap. But he had still arrived ahead of his guildmates.

His gaze fell to the Phoenix's Eye emblem on his forearm. He closed his eyes, sighed, and pressed a button on the Sonic Boom's console, pulling a microphone out of its holster near his elbow. With a quiet hum, the lacrima network inside the magicmobile's framework activated, ready to pump out the tunes. But that wasn't Boomer's intention.

"Regykraeon!" The Sound wizard spoke into the microphone, and his voice echoed all throughout the town at incredible volume. "I know you're here somewhere! Come and face me!"

High above him, a cloud drifted in front of the sun, casting the entire town into shadow. Boomer tensed, looking in every direction nervously.

Faintly, the sound of malevolent laughter reached his eardrums, seemingly coming from everywhere in the town. Every dusty doorway, every crack in the cobblestones, the entire town cackled at some private joke. High above, the sky, once clear, was rapidly turning overcast as more and more clouds appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, and steadily blackened.

Suddenly, blue lightning blazed in jagged lines from every chimney in the town, reaching up towards the gathering storm and electrocuting them, sending flashes of lightning running through the sky as the last few patches of blue sky within sight were blotted out. Boomer tensed, keeping his guard up. The magic power running through the lacrima network in his car crackled, reacting to the concentrated ethernano permeating the air.

There was a massive flash as a hugely intense bolt of blue electricity flashed down from the sky, directly in front of Boomer. The portly wizard shielded his eyes. But the pillar of energy refused to dissipate, shrinking and hovering, growing toothpick-like, jagged limbs that pulsed with power, and the shape cackled maniacally, as glowing yellow eyes and a matching, twisted grin appeared on its 'head'. The figure had no hands or feet, its electric blue limbs ending in sharp points, and tiny purple pupils leered down at Boomer. "So, the errant novice returns, eh? Come to cross the road at last, little chicken?"

"I'm going to finish you, right here," Boomer growled.

"You tried that, remember?" the monster snorted, folding his arms and shaking his head, his grin never slipping. "Didn't go so well for you,"

"I -" Boomer started, but the figure cut him off. "As a matter of fact, if memory serves, I ran circles around you! Literally! Hah, that was a riot!" he chuckled, gleefully reliving memories of the events of six years ago. "Oh, but I'm sorry, I interrupted. Go ahead,"

"This time's gonna be different," Boomer growled. "This time, I have the Sonic Boom,"

"This time, you have a glorified boombox on wheels? Hah, now that's a joke," the monster chuckled, before spreading his arms wide. "Alright then, kid! I am Regykraeon "The Fallen Star", demon of the sky and an Etherious of Zeref's Bookshelf!" The Etherious chuckled as his magical presence, already intense, grew to such an extent that it felt like the air itself was made of lead. "Catch me if you can," Regykraeon winked playfully, before flashing away into Ghoulia's main road.

In response, Boomer gritted his teeth, pressed down on the accelerator and felt the Sonic Boom fling itself forwards, hot on the speedy demon's tail. It shredded along the street, matching Regykraeon's speed. The Sound wizard bore a small smile as he tapped the translucent holomagical readouts that covered the Sonic Boom's windscreen, selecting a preloaded playlist and loaded it into the lacrima network.

As one, every single one of the dozens of speakers large and small that the Sonic Boom was loaded with burst into life, pumping out a heavy beat of such intensity and noise that the ground underfoot vibrated.

Regykraeon winced as the intense waves of sound permeated his being. "You wanna play that way?" he shouted back to Boomer, using his air magic to make himself heard. "Fine, I'll just have to increase the amplitude!" he shouted, and somehow, impossibly, sped up even further, continuing to power down the main road in Ghoulia.

Boomer nodded to himself. "Just as I expected. Now, let's hope Astro came through," he nodded, grasping the gear stick with his free hand (the one that wasn't clutching at the steering wheel with white knuckles) and pressing it forward, slotting it into a position marked with a 'W'.

The Sonic Boom's speed increased, as, under the hood, a secondary engine activated, using molecular vibrations to magnetise the ethernano in the air and absorb its power. The result was that a thin white layer of crackling energy built up, covering the vehicle's edges.

And, suddenly, it warped forwards, speeding through space itself as a massive BOOM echoed behind it. Boomer grinned. Astro had come through. The warp-speed engine was working.

Regykraeon looked behind him at the noise, still flashing through the air, and his yellow eyes widened, as the warp had actually allowed the Sonic Boom to close the gap a bit. With another percussive detonation, it warped forwards again, drawing ever closer. "I don't believe it," the Etherious gasped, before frowning. "Alright!" He blitzed away, accelerating ever further down the road, and Boomer followed, the Sonic Boom skipping ahead every few seconds.

In a flash they left the town, rocketing down a dusty alleyway, and, another flash later, the racers shot through a decayed wooden entrance, shooting into a mine shaft. Luckily, the shaft was just barely wide enough to let the triangular magicmobile through, and Boomer continued to chase the air demon, slowly but surely gaining on him. Percussive, intense beats echoed through the tunnels, causing the foundations to shake, but hold firm.

Eventually, Regykraeon decided that attempting to outrun Boomer was futile. Turning in mid-air and streaking backwards, he extended his pointy arms and shouted, "Enough cat and mouse! Terrifying Typhoon!" The beginnings of a furious storm, right there in the tunnel, began to be blasted towards Boomer, but the intense sound waves emanating from the Sonic Boom instantly dissipated the aerial attack.

An incredulous smile began to appear on Boomer's face, as he spotted Regykraeon's expression. For the first time, the demon didn't look entirely certain of his victory.

The mine shaft they were driving upwards in began to slant, ascending towards the surface. Boomer realised that they were probably inside the semicircle of mountains that surrounded Ghoulia on two sides, and attributed this to the fact that the tunnels hadn't collapsed from all the noise he was blasting into the walls. The route continued, Boomer slowly but surely catching up to Regykraeon. The fact that the tunnel was slowly curving allowed the demon to hog the inside of the turn, and thus maintain just enough of a lead, but Boomer was still gaining on him, every time the Sonic Boom warped.

And, after about five minutes of shooting through the tunnels, there was a light. Regykraeon grinned, shooting forwards, and Boomer followed.

The two combatants blasted into the open air, rocketing onto a large plateau that, from tn looks of things, was at the top of the tallest mountain in the range. Boomer, spotting the cliff face in front of him, frantically pulled the gearstick into reverse, and, squealing the wheels backwards, he just barely managed to avoid tumbling off the side of the cliff.

Regykraeon darted about in mid-air, cackling maniacally. "Hah! You can't get me here, can you? Suck-ah!"

Boomer glowered at him, carefully backing up the Sonic Boom and taking in his surroundings, shutting the music off as he did to conserve energy. It was at this he realised that it was no ordinary plateau.

In the centre were three large stone outcroppings that bent towards each other like fingers, which supported a large, faded white lacrima that faintly glowed between them, that anime with its own radiance in the stormy gloom. Between them was a marble altar, white material in sharp contrast to the grey-black rock surrounding it. And, resting on the altar, was a book.

Boomer paled, realising what the book was. "You're trying to summon one of your kin, aren't you?"

"You always were a smart one, weren't you?" Regykraeon tutted. "But it doesn't matter. For six long years I've been feeding the book of my older brother with human life force, and now, finally, he is almost ready to awake!" the Etherious cheered. "I just need one more . . just one more human life," And, at this, his yellow eyes narrowed and his gaze locked onto Boomer. "And I know exactly where I'm going to get it,"

 _~P's E~_

 _"And now, it's time for Doctor Kit's Documentaries on Phoenix's Eye!" Kit shouted. "Today, we shall be giving explanation of the Etherious, and how exactly they come to be in this world, since canon Fairy Tail kind of skipped over a lot of that. So Technow's decided to fill in a few of the blanks with his own ideas as to how it all works,"_

 _"As I'm hopeful you already know, the Etherious are a subspecies of demons created by the Black Mage Zeref four hundred years ago. These demons are all sealed within objects, normally books, however there are a couple of exceptions to this rule, such as Lullaby, an Etherious whose soul is sealed within a flute," he explained, pointing to a drawing of a lot of rectangles that look vaguely like books, which are accompanied by a flute, a ball, and a piece of chicken. "I don't envy the drumstick Etherious," Kit whispered with a cheeky wink._

 _"Anyway. These containment units, vessels, so to speak, act as prisons for the Etherious, however, with the right magic rituals, these prisons can be unlocked and the demon within released. Because they are powerful demons, Etherious are very difficult to kill, so the preferred method of dealing with them, if possible, is to trap them back in their vessel. This, though, is usually impossible, because, after they're released, an Etherious' first order of business is to destroy their vessel,"_

 _"Also, just as a note of interest; you know how the canon Etherious all have certain titles? Regykraeon's is "The Fallen Star", and he uses an Atmosphere Curse that allows him to manipulate anything in the sky, be it air, cloud, lightning, rain, whatever,"_

 _"I'll have more info later, on DK's Ds!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **Yeah, you all can just think of Regykraeon as the Phoenix's Eye counterpart of Deliora. XD Peace!**


	21. The Oncoming Storm

Chapter 21: The Oncoming Storm

Regykraeon grinned. "This is going to be fun, isn't it?" he chuckled. "Hey, what do you get when you cross a fruit and a pancake?"

"Uh, delicious breakfast?" Boomer tried, hoping to distract Regykraeon long enough to find an avenue for escape.

"Nope!" the air demon cackled. "A squash! Now, Horrifying Hammer!" He raised his arms, and a massive implement of blue lightning appeared between them, a huge mallet that he swung back, ready to attack Boomer with.

Frantically, the Sound wizard backed up, and the hammer slammed into the ground in front of the Sonic Boom. "You know what they say about good jokes," Regykraeon grinned as his hammer transformed into a spear. "They really slay the audience!"

"No one's said that in twenty years!" Boomer snapped, as he gunned the gas pedal. The Sonic Boom rocketed forwards, drifted in a turn around the plateau that sent up sparks where the wheels hit the rock, and bolted for the cave - only to see it suddenly collapse in front of him. "I'm a four hundred year old demon, so keeping up with the times can be tough," Regykraeon shrugged, bringing back his spear for a stab. "But I gotta say, I think that last move rocked!"

Boomer rolled his eyes. Six years on, and Regykraeon still thought he was cool. "Puns are the lowest form of humour!" he snapped, searching for an escape route.

"Tell me, kid, do you know what this is?" Regykraeon smirked, drifting over to the white orb suspended by the altar.

"No," Boomer shook his head, still weighing up his options. The plateau was surrounded on one side by insurmountable rock, and on the other three a steep drop . . Boomer frowned. Could he make it?

"This is the collective life force of the entire village of Ghoulia's inhabitants. Including," the demon's smirk turned wicked. "Your parents,"

"Shut up," the Sound wizard hissed, his teeth clenched.

"And not just them, either. The children you went to school with, the butcher who sold you your dinners, kind old Mrs. Fanny from down the street . . . they're all in here, all dead, and all because of you. How does it feel?" the monstrous, electric being asked with a wicked leer. "Don't tell me you'd forgotten,"

Boomer's resolve set, and the boy twisted the wheel and floored the accelerator, as he cranked the volume of the speakers up to full blast. All-too-familiar voices echoed through his ears, but the instrumental music drowned them out as his magicmobile leapt forwards, rocketing towards the edge of the cliff.

"Wha - no! No no no no NO!" Regykraeon shouted through the noise. "That's cheating! I can't use your life force if you commit suicide!" he protested, zapping towards Boomer.

But even the fastest demon in Earth Land was too slow to prevent Boomer from plunging over the side of the cliff. He only watched as the Sonic Boom slid down the mountainside towards Ghoulia.

~P's E~

"Whoa," Tyria blinked. "Check out the storm," The Garuda had, just moments ago, been sailing through clear sky, but now, as though they had crossed some sort of boundary, the air was turning overcast and oppressive, a massive bank of grey clouds above them blotting out the sun.

"That can't be good," Sarah frowned.

~P's E~

Regykraeon landed, and threw his stick-like arms into the air, chanting, "Sky and earth, stone and lightning! Become one now, and create something frightening!" he chanted.

At his command, the cloudy sky began to spin, concentric circles that moves slowly at first, but rapidly picked up speed. A bolt of blue electricity arced down from the sky and struck the largest boulder that had been dislodged by the rockslide. As power coursed into the rubble, it began to warp, growing arms and legs and a head with two dull, glowing eyes. The space beneath them twisted and tore into a mouth with jagged lips that resembled teeth. The newly formed golem bellowed, before stomping over to Regykraeon, pausing in front of the demon. "What is Master of Golem's task? Golem do anything, Master just ask," the monster poetically questioned.

Regykraeon regarded his creation in befuddlement, before slapping his face with an appendage. "I knew I shouldn't have used a rhyming incantation. Pizazz is not worth this," He groaned, and pointed to the cliff side. "Go find a wizard and bring them back here, alive," he commanded.

Golem saluted, walking to the cliff edge. Regykraeon paused, cocking his head, but his eyes widened as the monster simply stepped off the cliff. And promptly fell like the rock he was. "Ouchy, ow, ow, ouch ow," his voice echoed from down the cliff. "Golem is in pain now,"

"I'd better keep an eye on him," the blue demon snorted. He was about to cast a far-sight spell to track his monster's activities, when his extended senses detected something entering the storm above Ghoulia. "Oh, what's this?" A sly smile crossed

Regykraeon's face. "So, the errant novice has some friends, hmm? It does look as though they might be troublesome to deal with on their own," He ran a quick count of all the different kinds of life force he could sense. "Seven, plus the novice makes eight . . . oh, damn it all, I don't have enough power for more than one more creation," Regykraeon groaned, muttering to himself. "Although," A thought struck the demon, and he grinned. "There is an old friend who owes me a favour . . . but how fast can she get here?"

~P's E~

Meanwhile, Kit was having a hard time controlling the Garuda. "We've gotta land!" the yokai shouted, panicked.

"Why?" Tyria called back.

"Because these winds are too strong! If we stay in the air, we'll get sucked into the storm!" Kit retorted.

As one, the five wizards on board looked at the glowing blue heart of the storm cell that they were currently on the fringes of. "Going in there could kill us even if this were a normal storm," Sarph pointed out.

"Then what would a magical storm do to us?" Grace questioned.

"There are some things that are best left unsaid," Pierce commented, and the young Dragon Slayer gulped.

The Garuda dipped, making for the town square - the only place in Ghoulia large enough to fit the airship's hull. "I'm gonna go take a look around," Tyria suggested, and when no complaint was forthcoming, she nodded, declared, "TechType: Jetpack!" and, as the fan-blade jetpack manifested on her back, she took off, launching into the air above Ghoulia.

Immediately, she spotted something falling down the mountain, and, mentally tweaking her jetpack's settings, sent herself rocketing towards the disturbance.

~P's E~

Boomer groaned. The Sonic Boom was well-built, and looked like it had survived, mostly. But one of the things that had been taken out, to make room for all the speakers, was the airbag. As it was, he could see through the windscreen that his fall had been arrested by running into a tree. He was near the base of the mountain, and the Sonic Boom didn't look too much the worse for wear . . in contrast to his head.

The sound of scrabbling rocks warned him something was happening, and he turned around . . . before recalling that the bulk of the Sonic Boom prevented him from seeing the rear. Instead, he activated the rear-view camera.

There was a large rock falling down the mountain towards him and . . . singing?

But then what looked a lot like a silver rocket came out of nowhere and knocked it to the side, diverting the boulder away from him. Boomer frowned. That kind of looked like . . Tyria?

~P's E~

Tyria had spotted the Sonic Boom. She didn't recognise it, but she also saw the boulder tumbling down the cliff towards it, and shot forwards to knock it away with a massive punch from her TechType: Tectonics.

It was only after she had hit it that she realised it was singing about how much pain it was in.

And then the 'boulder' extended an arm and grabbed her Tectonic fist, pulling her down the mountain.

Looking back, the tech wizard wasn't certain what exactly happened on the way down. But it ended with her lying on top of a humming golem in a field.

As soon as she came to her senses, Tyria leapt off and inspected herself. Her Jetpack spell had disappeared during the fall, and a pop-up in her vision warned her that it had been damaged, and couldn't be used until her body was repaired. Tyria frowned, but nodded, and checked her fist. Her right arm's Tectonic transformation was similarly damaged, but that was fine too. Her left arm was fully functional, and there were other things she could do with her right.

Her make-up was a mess, though, and it was a wonder her ponytail had held intact. If only she had a TechType: Vanity Mirror.

But she might have had to worry about that later, because the golem, as she now realised the boulder was, was waking up. "Golem is not snoring, he's up in the morning," the animated rock moaned.

Tyria raised a confused eyebrow. "Are you rhyming?"

As the monster stood up, it turned and looked at her with a painful creak of stone. He suddenly recalled his master's orders. "Are you a wizard, and are you alive? Golem must know, for his master's drive,"

"Uh, yes?"

"Then Golem must take you back to his Master," the rock droned, raising its arms. "To not do so would be a disaster,"

"Wait," Tyria frowned, before her eyes widened in shock, realising the beast planned to bring his stone fists down on her. She frantically dodged, and the monster turned.

"Fine then. TechType: Chainsaw!" she shouted, and her right arm morphed from the elbow down into a large silver piece of machinery, that revved into life and shredded the air. As the golem tried to hit her again, she stood her ground and the weapon bit into the less solid stone, carving splinters from it.

In response, the monster wrapped its stone fingers around her weapon and began to squeeze. Tyria gritted her teeth. Just because her arm was currently metal, didn't mean there was no neural feedback.

A saying swum to the front of her mind; the best defence was a good offence. "TechType: Tectonics!" she shrieked, transforming her left arm and throwing an uppercut underneath her raised right, which slammed into the monster's chin. Then the tectonic piston inside it activated with a hiss, and doubled the impact.

The golem staggered back, releasing her arm, and Tyria gratefully transformed her body back to flesh. That was another spell down until her magic repaired it . . damnit.

"Golem is in pain," the monster growled. "Puny girl annoys Golem. Golem will crush you,"

"That was the worst haiku I've ever heard," Tyria gulped, keeping her distance. Okay, what did she have that could damage this thing? Her force field was useless against a melee attacker, and her machine gun wouldn't do more than annoy a being of stone. Using her bike to escape might be an option, but it wasn't useful in combat. Neither was her helmet. Perhaps she should go Mark II?

Although . . there was that new spell she'd been trying to code recently. It was worth a try, at least.

"Alright," Tyria nodded. "TechType - woah!" Interrupting her spell, she frantically dodged as the golem charged her again, and took the opportunity to clock the monster in the head again. Golem staggered backwards a step, and Tyria took the opportunity to put some distance between herself and him.

"There once was a wizard with TechType magic," the monster drawled as it advanced again. "She annoyed a Golem owned by Regyk. But the wizard was small, and Golem can crush it all. So she met an end that was very tragic," he spouted off a limerick as he advanced and tried to crush Tyria again.

But this time, the girl was ready. "TechType:," she gritted her teeth and put her hands together, almost as though in prayer. "Drill!" At once, her arms from the elbow down mechanised and fused, expanding in concentric circles until a high-powered drill was attached to her arms, whirring and spinning. She plunged it forwards, stabbing with both hands at the Golem - but, first, he pushed it aside with one hand, and stepped back to prevent it from making contact with his chest. Tyria tried to stab again, but the heavy machinery dragged her down. She wasn't strong enough to lift it!

"Oh no," As the monster brought its hands up for another crushing blow, the wizard had little choice but to release the transformation and duck out of the way. The golem's fist landed inches from her feet, and she whimpered in fear - but then her eyes caught something.

The Golem's hand had suffered significant damage from where it had met her drill. "Hey," Tyria breathed, rapidly thinking. TechType: Drill was strong enough to destroy the golem, but it was too heavy. She couldn't move quickly enough for it to be efficient.

Could she?

"You will die now, and you know how," the monster rumbled. "Not today! TechType: Motorbike!" Tyria shouted, pirouetting and generating her motorbike. She tore off, smashing through the fence that made the barrier of the field, before twisting her front wheel and driving in a massive circle. Golem watched her in confusion. "Are you running away? Golem still wants to play," he complained.

"TechType: Drill!" Tyria snapped, raising her arms and resting the reformed drill on the front of her bike, steering with her legs as she banked back towards her enemy.

"Is this Golem's death? Does he take his final breath?" the golem managed to stutter out one last rhyme before the drill bike smashed into his chest, shredding his arms and piercing his body. The stone shattered, sending its extremities flying away in all directions. Tyria crunched the feet under her wheels, driving between the fractured, crumbling arms and watching the head fly into the distance. She shut down her Drill, using her freed arms to check her system diagnostics. "Not good . . . I should get back to the Garuda," she resolved, seeing the number of red lights. With that, she turned and made for the general direction of the town, hoping to use the airship's massive, billowing gasbag to identify its position.

~P's E~

"Everyone alright?" Pierce called. The landing had been rough, but the Garuda had held its integrity, and by the looks of things the rest of the group was just dazed . . . except Hare, who looked to have disappeared.

Kit emerged through the deck, eyes dazed and unfocused. "Can bag go I in the back now, Santa?" he moaned, before collapsing, and Pierce frantically dived to catch him. Holding the yokai in one hand, who he had to be very careful with to prevent him from sinking through his palm, he Requipped his flute with the other and played the tune to return Kit to its inside.

Grace appeared out of a ripple in the air and nodded. "I'm fine," she reassured Pierce, who started with worry as he saw her. "The crash threw me off the deck, but I caught myself before I hit anything,"

"Did you use the bent gravity loop?" Sarph asked, walking over, and Grace nodded, smiling. "The what?" Pierce frowned.

"It's a technique where I bend the space beneath me in a sort of 'U' shape, so when I fall down, I immediately go through the bent space and go back up, where I fall down, back into the bent space and back into the original spot," Grace eagerly explained.

"Uh, cool," Pierce decided to just pretend he understood and change the subject. "Where's Hare?"

"Not sure," Sarph frowned. "Could she have been thrown off like Grace?"

"More likely she ran off," the Tamer frowned.

"I'm sure she wouldn't just abandon us," Grace optimistically pitched in.

"Well, yeah. It'll be faster to take care of what's going on here and fly back in the Garuda than it would be to run back to Magnolia, even with her speed," Pierce reasoned. "Which means she's probably gone looking for trouble," he groaned.

"Chin up. We're all particularly good at looking for trouble," Sarph grinned. "So we'll probably catch up sooner or later,"

"That's kind of what worries me," Pierce admitted, and Grace resolutely nodded.

"Well, we won't find her by hanging around here. Or Boomer for that matter," Sarph shrugged. "And that landslide we spotted from the air is probably our best bet. Let's go investigate,"

~P's E~

Regykraeon growled. "Okay, that golem wasn't my best work . . . here's hoping my friend will arrive soon," The demon turned back to the rock, after casting a stray glance at his altar. "I suppose I should try again. This time, no rhyming," He thought to himself, knowing he had to take a different approach. "Something smaller, faster. Hmm . . . I think I have an idea," the demon grinned.

 _~P's E~_

 _"Welcome back to DK's Docs!" Kit grinned. "Today, I shall discuss golems,"_

 _"Golems are inanimate objects who have been brought to life by an appropriate kind of magic. Theoretically, anything can be made into a golem, BUT unless the golem has face and form, it'll be pretty useless. It's all good and well bringing a cup to life, but the cup can't see or hear anything because it has no eyes or ears, can't say anything because it has no mouth, and can't do anything because it has no limbs. It's just a waste of magic,"_

 _"However, things like dolls and statues can be brought to life through animation magic, or Regykraeon's Atmosphere Manipulation Curse. They can do things, and they are always completely subservient to the person whose magic animated them. However, armies of golems aren't viable options unless you have Hades-level magic power reserves, because golems need a constant source of magic power to draw on in order to maintain their existence. So, the only way to keep a golem around permanently is to have magic power that recovers faster than the golem drains it. Which is very difficult to do, therefore golems are considered impractical, because under most circumstances, anything a golem can do for you, it'll be more efficient to do yourself,"_

 _Kit grinned, chuckling. "Regykraeon's burning his Curse power fast with these golems. I wonder if that'll come back to bite him later? Well, that's all for now, see you next time, on DK's Ds!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **I think that went well. I have an entire match roster set up, and Sonic Boom is scheduled to wrap up at Chapter 24 as I write this (though I am hoping to have it done by Chapter 23, depending on how much I can cram into the next couple.) That would mean I'd have three chapters to dig into Oracion Seis during this segment, which would allow me to devote opening #3 territory to the latter half of Oracion Seis, Electria and Edolas. Though that might change as I go forwards, so no guarantees there.**

 **. . . Of course, here we are several months after I wrote that, only just about to (finally) post this, soooooo . . . eh. Peace!**


	22. Everything Explodes If You Hit It Enough

Chapter 22: Everything Explodes If You Hit It Enough

Regykraeon watched proudly as his second creation sped off down the hill, before pausing, and patting his chest. "Oof, that took it out of me. This one had better work,"

"What had better work?" a lilting voice called, and The Fallen Star turned in surprise, before grinning. "My new minion," he shrugged.

"Oh, Regy. Don't tell me you're still messing around with golems, are you?" the newcomer rolled her eyes. "Of course you are. You never change, do you?"

"Aww, lighten up, Seilah. Have a laugh!" the demon smirked, floating down to match the humanoid demoness.

"You know, Mard Geer's trying to set something up. A way to ensure that we can all return to our creator sooner than later," Seilah informed him. "Me and Kyoka have already signed on, would you like to join?"

"Really? Sounds fun. I'll need to ask my brother, of course, but I think we can join in as soon as we're done here," Regykraeon grinned. "How is that old hag, anyway?

"Oh, she's just fine. What exactly is the problem?" The horned demon asked.

"Direct as always. You haven't changed either," her brother nodded. "A few human wizards have shown up and are causing a bit of a problem. I'd deal with them myself, but I need to stay here and make sure nothing goes wrong with the ritual,"

"Why isn't it complete yet?" Seilah asked. "This story needs its climax,"

Regykraeon groaned. "I need the life force of one more being to finish things. That's what my golem's for. It's going to bring back a wizard to use as the final sacrifice,"

The Etherious blinked, before groaning. "Of course that's your plan. This is why I like cultists, they're so much more disposable," she muttered to herself. "Well, I suppose I should get out there and bring back one of these wizards. It will be a boring chapter, but every story has one," With that, she shot away, running down the mountain at superhuman speed.

Regykraeon grinned, watching her go. "Damn. If we weren't related . . ."

~P's E~

The Sonic Boom roared to life, and Boomer grinned as his car reversed out of the ditch. "Alright, now what?" Carefully skirting the grove, he decided to head back into town and go back to the mines. Regykraeon was an air demon, he'd be at his weakest underground . . . His gaze trailed off as he spotted the red balloon canopy in town, recognising it as the Garuda. "Of course they came. Why wouldn't they come?" Boomer groaned to himself, changing course and speeding towards town.

He just hoped he'd get there in time.

~P's E~

"Alright, gang. Let's split up and look for clues," Sarph suggested as his Aera wings materialised. "If anyone finds anything, shout,"

"I don't think that's a good idea. What if we get attacked?" Pierce frowned. Grace nodded in agreement.

"We're all strong wizards. And if you're really in trouble, then shout," Sarph shrugged. "Rendezvous back at the Garuda in an hour," With that, he beat his wings, lifting off, and launched into the air.

"I guess he knows what he's doing? He is S-Class," Grace pointed out.

"I know, but still," Pierce trailed off, casting the young Dragon Slayer a worried glance.

Grace hugged him, smiling up at her mentor. "Don't worry, Pierce. I'll be fine,"

"Okay," And with that, Grace ran off in a different direction.

"Alright," Pierce nodded to himself, Requipping his flute and playing a tune. With a flash of silver light, Knox emerged from the inside of his instrument, and the werewolf turned to regard him. Pierce noted that the werewolf seemed ill at ease. "Why are we in a place like this?" Knox irritably asked.

"What's wrong?" the Tamer asked.

"This entire place reeks of demon magic," Knox snapped in his raspy tones, shaking his head. "It's vile,"

This only put Pierce even more on edge. "Well, that can't be good," he muttered. "Can you get a lock on Boomer's scent? He should be around here somewhere,"

"Boomer. Fat kid with sound magic," Knox took a second to recall, before crouching on all fours and sniffing around. "I'm not smelling him . . but there is a very strong smell of magicmobile exhaust, as well as -" The beast cut himself off, raising his head and pricking up his ears. "Take cover! Now!" he immediately shouted.

Experience had taught Pierce to heed Knox' warning without question, and he immediately darted out of the middle of the road, ducking into a doorway. He kept his eyes trained on Knox and his flute raised, ready to recall the werewolf any second.

Knox in his turn raised himself onto his hind legs, keeping his forelegs raised and ready to fight. He constantly looked around, searching for the source of the disturbance.

If Pierce had blinked, he might have missed it. One moment Knox was standing there, alert, and the next he was gone. As it was, he had just barely caught the image of a glowing blue, dog-like monster rushing down the street and bowling his wolf over. He blinked in surprise, before hastily rushing after the two.

Knox was surprised as well, but not enough to prevent his combat instincts from kicking in. Even as he was knocked over, he rolled and cuffed his assailant on the jaw, who promptly released him. Grateful for the reprieve, Knox slid across the street before coming to a landing against a wall, as his attacker eyed him with a menacing growl.

The monster was quadruped, made of stone and surrounded by a glowing blue aura, with squat jowls and dull eyes on a head that was mounted on a two-foot neck. Its body was built like a large dog, with limbs that looked agile but powerful. A long, snakelike tail extending from its rear was the only break in the canine thematic.

Knox tched irritably. "You think you're tough? You're just an enchanted garden ornament!" he barked.

His opponent growled, a guttural, wordless noise. "Monster of few words, huh? Fine, I'll just have to talk for both of us," the wolf smirked, baring his claws.

The two canine monsters launched themselves at each other, prepared to fight to the death if necessary. Pierce watched, prepared to intervene at any moment . . . and suddenly had a thought.

~P's E~

Grace ran through the streets of Ghoulia, shouting, "Boomer? Hare? Where are you?"

From the rooftops, a pair of gleaming yellow eyes watched her, inquisitive, curious. A smile spread across the face that the eyes belonged to, as it swooped along the rooftops in pursuit.

The young Dragon Slayer continued to run mostly at random through the streets, making sure that she was never anywhere that she couldn't see the Garuda from - until her foot caught a protruding cobblestone, and she tripped.

With a gasp, she fell over, landing flat on her face with her arms out to catch herself. "Owie," Grace moaned, rubbing her head.

"How pathetic," a cool voice snorted.

Looking up, Grace frantically scrambled to her feet and looked around. "Who's there?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" the feminine voice continued. Grace decided that a different point of view might be helpful, and with a twist of her wrist, she bent the space right in front of her with the reality on a nearby rooftop, passing through the twisted fabric of reality to walk onto the roof. It returned to normal behind her, and Grace looked around, searching for the source of the voice.

"Oh, you found me. Well done," Something stirred within the shadows of a nearby chimney, and Grace rounded on it, folds of reality rippling around her fists to form gloves.

Seilah, light glinting off her bronzed horns, emerged, smiling at her. "Oh, how interesting. A young heroine in this story. You'll do nicely, oh yes indeed,"

Grace stepped backwards, holding her fists outstretched. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, you'll know soon. But this is quite interesting. I don't think I've ever seen magic quite like that," the demoness mused, advancing. She raised her hand - and Grace's body suddenly went rigid. Seilah advanced, smiling coldly. "I am Seilah, "Goddess of the Chill Moon". Tell me, little girl, do you know what an Etherious is?"

Grace managed to squeak a negative noise through frozen lips.

"Oh, what a shame. An Etherious is a demon. A demon born of Zeref's magic. Now, do you know who Zeref is?" Seilah asked in a patronising tone. Again, Grace squeaked a negative, and she groaned. "Ugh. What do you humans get taught in schools these days?"

Seilah flicked her finger, and Grace's arms shot up. She continued to move forwards, stopping directly in front of the Dragon Slayer, and, with a deft movement, she tore the girl's shirt off, leaving her covered by only her underwear. "Oh, interesting," Seilah smiled, looking at the two scars on her chest and stomach. The Etherious gently touched the scarred skin on Grace's chest, feeling the five little bumps of inhibition lacrimas just under the skin. "I wonder what's under here?"

Grace felt her lips unfreeze, and she frantically babbled, "They're control lacrimas to make sure that I don't lose control of my magic so please don't touch them I honestly don't know what'll happen but it'll probably kill you -" Her mouth froze again, and Seilah tutted. "Oh, I very much doubt that. As a matter of fact -"

The demon suddenly stopped talking. Because the demon was no longer in front of her. A gleaming, intricately decorated golden sword had flown out of nowhere, pierced the demon through the chest, and knocked her straight off the roof.

"Grace! Are you alright?" Sarah's voice shouted from somewhere to her left. Suddenly, her body unfroze, and the girl turned to see her saviour.

Sarph swept in, landing next to her. "Regykraeon, I presume?" he called down to the woman on the ground, impaled by the sword against the road as she was.

With a grunt, Seilah pulled the blade out of her chest and tossed it away. "That hurt," she spat. "You must have enchanted that sword well to injure one such as me,"

"There is no magic that my Spell-Shattering Sigil cannot cut to pieces," Sarph declared.

"In answer to your question, I am not Regykraeon. My name is Seilah, and my brother just called me to help him out against you lot," Seilah snorted. "I'm starting to see why he needed it," she muttered to herself. "And in answer to your challenge, cutting magic to pieces is one thing. But can it cut through Curses?"

Sarph raised a blond eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Seilah extended a hand in the direction of Sarph's sword, declaring; "Macro!" At her command, the sword rose into the air, before flying, end over end, towards the two wizards. Sarph frantically dodged, and Grace vanished into a ripple of reality as it spun away into the sky.

"So, you would fancy yourself an angel, would you?" Seilah raised an eyebrow and smiled at the S-Class wizard. "Good. The best stories are when angels and demons fight,"

"Don't forget the dragons!" Grace shouted, leaping out of a distortion in the ground and throwing a punch at the Etherious' exposed back. Caught off-guard, Seilah stumbled forwards a step and turned to cast a Curse at the girl, but Grace had already vanished back into the folds of space.

"Hoi!" Sarph's voice attracted her attention, and she turned and looked up, just in time to spot Saroh hovering above her. "No one takes my blade!" he shouted, hefting Solamion in his hand. The blade gleamed with a vengeance, silhouetted against the sunlight.

Seilah smirked.

Sarph's body suddenly went rigid, and, his wingbeats interrupted, he fell to the ground, crashing down ten feet down the road. "And to think I thought you might be interesting," Seilah sniffed. "Now, where'd the other one -"

Grace, unaware of her teammate's incapacitation, emerged from the air, ready to catch Seilah off-guard again, but this time the demon was ready. Not even turning to look, she cast a blast behind her, and Grace froze, incapacitated.

"Well, that was disappointing," she muttered to herself, regarding Grace. "Stand up," Obediently, the Dragon Slayer picked herself up and held herself taut. Seilah smiled to herself as she fingered the scar on Grace's stomach. "Regykraeon can have the man for his ritual. You, I want all to myself," she coldly smiled. "Me and Kyoka will have so much fun with you . . but I don't like having inhibitors on my toys," Her sharpened fingernail dug into the scar tissue, and, if not for the curse immobilising her, Grace would have screamed.

A tiny piece of crystal fell out of the open wound and into Seilah's palm. "This little piggy went to market," she crooned, continuing to drag her claw across the scar, and a second lacrima dropped into her palm. "This little piggy went home,"

Pressure started to build in Grace's head, resulting in a stinging headache. She wanted to close her eyes tight, but the curse held them open, and the girl could only make a strangled noise that sounded vaguely reminiscent of "Please . . no,"

Ignoring her, Seilah continued. "This little piggy had roast beef," she chuckled as the third lacrima dropped into her palm, and Grace's headache intensified. The fourth was accompanied by a mocking "And this little piggy had none,"

The girl felt pressure building throughout her body, as though her very blood was being compacted, squeezed, into her extremities by something growing inside her. "Stop," she hissed, plaintively.

Seilah regarded her with a haughtily raised eyebrow, before her smirk returned. "And this little piggy?" The last of the scar tissue was sliced open, the final inhibitor removed from Grace's body. "Went wee, wee, wee, wee,"

With its final defence removed, the magical power building within Grace's body reached its peak, causing her skin to glow with pure energy. The air around her intensified in pressure, and as the demon continued, "All the way . ." she paused, noticing the state Grace was in.

With her concentration broken, the spell on Sarph was broken too. The Archive wizard lifted himself to one knee, with every intention of rescuing Grace . . until he saw the situation the girl was in. "Oh no," he gulped, bringing his power to bear and summoning a three-foot-thick wall of Archive screens directly in front of him.

"Home?" Seilah whispered, her smirk gone, as the rampant magic inside her captive went critical.

To anyone watching, including Sarph, it looked an awful lot like Grace had exploded. Massive, destructive waves of grey, reality-tearing energy lashed out in every direction, annihilating everything they touched. Seilah was vaporised instantly, with not even dust remaining of her body. In less than a second, the blast reached Sarph and his makeshift fortifications. His magical shield took the worst of the blow, but even after he had poured all his strength into ensuring that the rampant magic wouldn't atomise him, the sheer percussive force of the blast threw him backwards, sending him spiralling off into the distance.

Grace screamed, unable to contain her own power, unable to even think straight for the sheer volume of magical energy coursing through her. Wordless agony, infinite anguish. There was too much . . too much for any being to contain . .

And, from the outside of it all, a being on another plane of existence swooped in, dodging around waves of reality-warping magic, searching for - and finding - the source.

And, suddenly, everything went dark and silent for Grace, as someone - something - else suddenly swamped her and relieved the pressure and the pain.

"Grace," a vaguely familiar voice echoed in her mind. "Let me in. Trust me,"

"W-who are you?" Grace thought, confused.

"You know me. We've only met a couple of times, but you know me," A female face framed in purple hair swam in her mind, followed by an image of a blue falcon with yellow eyes.

"You're that yokai, Quarla," Grace realised.

"Yes, and I'm also currently the only thing stopping you from burning yourself out and killing yourself. So, do you trust me?" Quarla repeated herself.

"Okay. Yes," Grace nodded.

"Good," And suddenly everything was nothingness.

~P's E~

Knox and the golem monster had been shadow-fighting for twenty minutes now, and neither had actually managed to land a blow. Both combatants were too fast, too wary, too eager to let the other person move first. Both of their fighting styles relied on retaliation, on going second, and neither canine beast wanted to make the first move.

Strangely enough, from Pierce's perspective anyway, it was a flying, screaming, S-Class wizard shooting overhead that broke the impasse.

In retrospect, that was probably noteworthy in itself, but Pierce wss more concerned with its immediate ramifications - because it distracted Knox for just long enough to give his opponent an advantage. With a mighty lunge, the flesh werewolf was thrown against the wall with such ferocity that it immediately knocked him out cold.

Pierce raised his flute, ready to recall Knox, but at the first note, the monster immediately lunged for him, and the Tamer had to interrupt his tune in order to leap out of the way.

"Raya's fire won't help against a being made of rock," Pierce frowned, trying to concoct a plan on the fly. "Rock, rock. What is the weakness of rock? . . It can't see! So it must use its ears mostly for navigation, like a bat!" he realised with a grin, before frantically leaping out of the way. 'I can't play any tunes, or it'll track me,' he thought, staying perfectly silent and still. It seemed to work, as the monster immediately lost track of him, nosing around in a vain attempt to find the Tamer.

Pierce blinked, as one of the craziest plans he'd ever come up with presented itself to him. 'Could that actually work?' he asked himself, shocked, before shrugging. This was a beast, after all, no matter what it was made of. And all beasts could be tamed.

Bringing his flute to his lips, he blew a deep, gravelly note into it. As expected, the monster immediately lunged for him, but its motion slowed as Pierce continued to play, starting with a low-pitched melody, which built into a steady crescendo of higher notes. By now, the stone beast had stopped entirely, and had its head cocked, listening.

Now, Pierce added some subtle extra notes to his tune, warm, inviting, pitched to remind beings of freedom, of happier times, and good company. With a curious growl, the monster inched forwards, and Pierce redoubled the symphony's intensity, pushing out vibrations. Obediently, the golem inched forwards, and a small swirl of blue and grey energy began to appear at the end of the flute, steadily growing wider. 'Come on,' the blond Tamer thought to himself, silently begging the monster to give in and allow Pierce to tame him.

And it seemed to be working. The portal was now large enough for the monster to put his head inside, and he did, hesitantly batting at its discoloured, milky surface, before nosing at it. Pierce grinned, continuing to play. Yes, it was working! He was taming the golem beast!

~P's E~

Regykraeon felt a tugging in his chest. The golem . . something was forcing it to expend Curse energy at an unsustainable rate. It could suck him dry like this. "Oh, no you don't," he growled, immediately realising it could only be one of those pesky humans, and decided to retaliate. A charge of electrical magical energy shot down the intangible connection, and he grinned, even as he shot off to follow it. This would be good.

~P's E~

"That's it, that's it," Pierce nodded, gently urging the monster on.

But, suddenly, it froze and it's unseeing eyes opened wide. And, in the next moment, it exploded, as the charge Regykraeon had sent caused its internal workings to combust. With its target no longer available, the flute's magic shut down, and the portal vanished - just in time to let the golem's head smash into Pierce. The Tamer was sent reeling, collapsing to the ground. His flute took the worst of it, and as its owner fell . . . a long crack ran down its body.

It was around now that Regykraeon was just entering town, and Boomer, spotting the demon, immediately chased after him. "Of! Come back!" the sound wizard commanded, accelerating in the Sonic Boom after his quarry. But Regykraeon barely noticed him.

After only a minute of chasing through streets, Regykraeon reached the crossing where Pierce had just been knocked unconscious. His flute was still clenched in his hand.

Boomer slowed, seeing the debris. The Sonic Boom halted right at the edge of the scattered rocks that had once been Regykraeon's golems, and the few seconds it took Boomer to leap out of the car upon seeing Pierce was all the flying demon needed to snatch up his friend in both arms. "Looks like the joke's on you!" Regykraeon grinned. "Because, with this, one final sacrifice, the ritual will be complete! And the punchline?" Yellow teeth bared, Boomer reflected that Regykraeon had never looked so sinister. "Will be killer," And with that, the demon shot into the air, a blue blur that vanished into the sky.

Boomer immediately guessed his goal. "Shit. I've gotta get back up the mountain," Jumping back into the Sonic Boom and throwing the magicmobile into reverse, he accelerated back out of town, before grinding one hundred and eighty degrees and shooting back down the dirt trail that led to the mine.

"This time," Boomer growled, his knuckles white against the steering wheel. "I'll definitely be fast enough,"

~P's E~

Hare stopped running, looking around the mountain from where she was crouched in the rut that the Sonic Boom had just abandoned. She had spent the last half an hour searching the town, and when that bore no fruit, she decided to go and look where Tyria had gone. "I know I saw something around here. Where could it have gone?"

The Speed wizard shrugged. "I suppose I should head back to the Garuda," she resolved, setting off.

 _~P's E~_

 _"Welcome back to Doctor Kit's Documentaries on Phoenix's Eye!" Kit cheered. "Today, we'll be listening to me complain about how little screentime I've gotten this arc!" he growled, glaring off-screen._

 _Suddenly, Kit's body went rigid, and a fake-looking smile plastered itself over his muzzle. "Actually, the real topic for today is following up on the limitations of Pierce's Beast Tamer magic. That is to say, there aren't many,"_

 _"Pierce could try to tame any living thing. Literally. ANY. LIVING. THING. However, there are limits; the more powerful a beast is, the more resistance it's capable of putting up. So, take a dragon for example. Sure, Pierce could try to tame it, but dragons are such intensely powerful beings that they'd shake off the spell with ease, and probably kill him for the insult,"_

 _"Now, humans. Pierce could try to tame another human - which is why taming worked on Knox and Victoria, both former humans. However, all magic has its limits, and it's forbidden depths, and human taming falls under the 'forbidden' category. You all remember what happened to Zoldeo of Grimoire Heart after he tried to use Human Enslavement Magic on Capricorn, a Celestial Spirit, right? There'd be comparable repercussions if Pierce were to try taming a human,"_

 _"That's all. See you next time!"_

 _Off-screen, Seilah cast an inquisitive look at Technow in his director's chair. "How was that?" she asked, and the author nodded. "Perfect,"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **Really nothing to say - well, except that this isn't, like, a permanent death for Seilah. Tartaros' regeneration pods are good to go.**

 **Actually, scratch that. I got a review last week that made me realise I might not have explained the situation quite properly with Regykraeon's lacrima; it's not that the people of Ghoulia are trapped in there. The people are dead. It's their life force that's in there, and life force is nothing but energy. When Regykraeon kills people, he can use the lacrima to collect and store their life force. There won't be any saving the people of Ghoulia - they've all been dead for a good six years.**

 **Also, minor thing I wanted to make a note of - when I was searching for songs I could use for upcoming opening themes, I found a nice little number called "Feel Invincible" by a small band called Skillet. (For a while I was going to use it as the third opening theme, but then I heard Macklemore's Glorious and that went out the window.) Anyway, one of the reasons 'Feel Invincible' stood out to me was . . I'm not entirely certain who the female backup singer is, but her voice sounds EXACTLY how I imagine Tyria's voice sounding. So if you all want to hear that, follow this link (the music video's lame, but it's a good song); m. youtube watch?v=Sf9NSd_2avA**

 **Now then, peace!**


	23. Overcharge

Chapter 23: Overcharge

Regykraeon, carrying Pierce, blazed to the top of the mountain, making for his circle. Inside the mountain, Boomer followed, racing up the mineshaft, warp-speed engine running hot.

It wasn't long until Regykraeon was hovering above, ready to sacrifice his unconscious captive. "Now, brother! The hour is nigh! Accept this final sacrifice and be reborn!" he cackled, screaming at the book on the pedestal, before raising Pierce in his limbs.

The flute, clutched in Pierce's hand, began to glow. Fiery orange light began to spill out of the crack running along its side. Regykraeon noticed, and frowned. "Wait, what's that?"

Scarcely a kilometre away, Boomer raced up the mineshaft. Suddenly, the sound wizard remembered the cave-in Regykraeon had caused. "I'm gonna have to time this just right," he resolved, seeing the blockage coming up, illuminated by the glowing lacrimas that would have once lit the tunnel for miners. "Three . . . two . . one . WARP!" the Sound wizard declared, flipping the switch. The white energy surrounding the magicmobile flared brightly, and it warped forwards, passing cleanly through the rubble and emerging on the other side.

In an instant, Boomer skidded to a halt, spotting Regykraeon and his captive directly above the three rocky fingers of the altar in the plateau's centre. "Oi! Glow-stick! Take this!"

The demon looked down, surprised. "Oh, what now?"

In a frenzy of motion, Boomer slammed the handbrake on, raised the lacrima speakers' volume to their maximum capacity, and gunned the accelerator. The Sonic Boom shot forwards, warp drive still engaged, and drifted, sliding along the rock with screeches of tortured metal. The grinding wheels kicked up sparks as Boomer forced his vehicle to drive in a massive circle around Regykraeon's altar, and the speakers activated, blasting a pillar of solid sound directly upwards. With a warp, the Sonic Boom flashed forwards, sending another blast of sound into the air, before skipping forwards again, and sending another pillar of vibrating air up into the sky. The process repeated, and the Sonic Boom circled until it seemed that Regykraeon was trapped by a massive cylinder of solid noise.

"Well, Regykraeon? Who's laughing now?" Boomer demanded via the speakers. The G-force was incredibly strong, but he pushed through it. "This is my endgame! You can't pass through air that's vibrating this intensely, nothing can! Face it, you're done for!"

The sound wizard wasn't really sure what he expected Regykraeon's reaction to this was, but it definitely wasn't laughter.

"Okay!" the Etherious cackled, shouting through the noise with air magic. "I'll admit it, you got me good! This is a pretty damn effective trap, little chicken!"

"And now," Reaching into the rear compartment of the Sonic Boom, Boomer retrieved his book of dark magic, the one that had once held Regykraeon captive and soon would again. "I just have to seal you back into this book,"

"But he who laughs last laughs the loudest!" Regykraeon continued, still chuckling. "And as brilliant as this is, little chicken, there's one small problem with your plan!"

Boomer, who had just been drawing breath to begin the incantation, paused, frowning.

"All I have to do is sacrifice this friend of yours, and my big brother will awaken!" the air demon smirked through yellowed teeth. "And your sound magic won't stop me from -"

Suddenly, Pierce's flute exploded, a massive torrent of orange flame billowing forth. Regykraeon screamed and dropped the wizard as a massive phoenix forced her way out of the crack in the flute, snatched up her Tamer in her claws and rapidly moved away from the demon as she took in the situation.

"Well, this can't be good," Raya muttered to herself.

The demon blinked, staring at his empty appendages in disbelief. "No!" he shouted, glaring at the phoenix and charging towards her, but a massive burst of flame from her beak repelled him.

"Keep him busy!" Boomer hollered at Raya from the Sonic Boom, as he opened the book with one hand and maintained the controls with the other. "Regykraeon, The Fallen Star, demon of the atmosphere and Etherious of the Black Mage Zeref's creation!" he spoke, and the speakers amplified his voice.

"No! I won't allow this! You haven't won! You won't best me!" Regykraeon shrieked, casting around maniacally for a route of escape.

"I hereby condemn thee to imprisonment within these pages, there to remain for all time," Boomer continued, and the demon continued to deny him. "No! There has to be something! There has to be . ." His gaze fell upon the altar, the white lacrima containing the life force of his sacrifices. "Yes! Brother, hear my call! Accept my sacrifice, be reborn and crush our foes!" Regykraeon screamed, diving downwards into the lacrima.

Everything seemed to slow as the demon vanished into the altar. Boomer trailed off, watching in shock, Raya seemed to hover in midair as she watched.

In spite of all the noise, there was a moment of silence as the demon sacrificed himself at his own altar. For a moment, the white lacrima glowed with blinding light, before suddenly emptying and turning transparent, like glass. "No way," Boomer gasped. "He sacrificed himself?"

His focus dropped, the Sonic Boom slid to a halt, the warp drive disengaged and the handbrake finally functional. Raya swooped down from where she hovered, carefully dropping Pierce into the passenger seat, before perching on the top of the vehicle.

"Pierce, wake up," Boomer commanded, gently slapping the Tamer, and the blond wizard stirred. "Whuh? Oh, hi Boomer - Boomer! What's going on? Are you in trouble?"

"it's a long story, but it looks like it's finally over," Boomer nodded to himself, smiling. This was incredible . . had he actually won? Was Regykraeon gone?

With a sickening _crack_ , the altar exploded, stone debris scattering everywhere. Raya shrieked, throwing up a wing to protect herself, and Pierce, spotting her, frantically played the tune to return her to the flute.

It was then that he noticed the instrument was damaged. "Hey, what happened to my flute?"

On the altar, the green book Regykraeon had been sacrificing to flew open, pages rippling back and forth as black energy flew from between them. A mighty bellow echoed through the sky, as a monstrous silhouette began to take form.

"What's that thing?" Pierce demanded, and Boomer paled. "Damnit . . if I'd known that bastard was planning something like this, I'd have brought more backup,"

"Are you in some kind of trouble?" the Tamer asked his friend, and Boomer was about to shake his head, but paused, and offered, "Well, I think we're all in trouble now," And, with that, even as the emerging demon was still forming, he threw the Sonic Boom into reverse and drove off the side of the mountain to escape. Again.

~P's E~

"Where have you been?" Tyria cast an irritated glare at Hare. The two girls were standing on the deck of the grounded Garuda, and Tyria was still sore from her fight with the Golem. Her arsenal had been shredded, and she was a little less than happy about the fact that Hare didn't even seem out of breath, let alone injured. So there was no way she'd been in a fight.

"Investigating," Hare evenly replied. "Unfortunately, I haven't found anything," she muttered irritably.

"Would you two ladies mind giving me a hand here?" a familiar voice called, and the two turned away from their argument to see Sarph, carrying a limp Grace in his arms. "Oh no!" Tyria gasped, scrambling for the ladder to let down. "What happened?" the dark-skinned wizard asked.

"We fought against a monster named Seilah," Sarph reiterated. "She was too powerful, even for me. But Grace . . . once Seilah had incapacitated us, she decided it would be fun to remove the lacrima that help Grace keep control of her powers," he glowered at the thought. "The release of magic vaporised Seilah, and threw me straight across town. When I got back, she was like this . . and I don't know what's wrong with her," he frowned. Tyria could see the S-Class mage's eyes trembling as he fought back tears.

"TechType: Helmet," she cast a spell, and the blue-tinted visor covered her eyes as her face shifted into metal. She drummed her fingers against the side of her mask as she shifted the settings, running a series of scans through her mechanised eyes. "She's alive, but by rights she shouldn't be," Tyria gulped. "It's like there's something inside her acting like a pressure differential, regularly releasing her pent-up magical energy into the air before it can go critical,"

"You're exhausted. Give her here," Hare commanded, and, trusting his fellow guild mage, Sarph passed Grace's body to her. In a flash, Hare somehow ascended the rope ladder with Grace in both arms - if Sarph had to hazard a guess, she was taking advantage of her speed to climb up the rope so quickly that it didn't have time to fall away beneath her feet - and her teammates followed.

"You have Grace's lacrima, right?" Tyria asked Sarph, and he nodded, patting his pocket. "Hopefully they can be put back into place,"

A massive flash of light from the top of one of the mountains overlooking Ghoulia alerted them that something was wrong, and both Sarph and Tyria looked over.

"Hey," the gold-clad wizard frowned. "It might just be me, but I think the storm's dying down," Sure enough, the swirling mass of cloud that had hovered above their heads since arriving in Ghoulia seemed to be dissipating.

"What's going on?" Hare asked as soon as they arrived on deck. She had already put Grace to bed downstairs. "I saw the flash. Do you think it's a good thing?"

"Hope for the best, prepare for the worst," Sarph answered. "Either way, our answers lie at the top of that mountain. Tyria, Hare? Can you two get this ship flying again, even without Kit?"

"I don't think so, it's designed to take at least six or seven people to operate it," Tyria gulped.

"Oh, pfft. I'm fast enough to do all that at once. You just handle the tiller and tell me what to do," Hare brushed her friend's concerns off, impatiently tapping her foot in a blur of motion.

The technology-using wizard nodded with a smile. "Alright, if you're sure. Let's get this bird flying,"

~P's E~

"Seriously, Boomer! I'd like an explana - whoa!" Pierce gasped as Boomer doglegged to the left, narrowly avoiding a blast of plasma.

"Survive first, explain second!" Boomer snapped before he flicked a control, and suddenly the speakers burst back into life, blaring heavy metal music throughout the area.

Drumbeats and electric guitar heralded each footstep of the thirty-foot-tall monster pursuing them, five gnarled claws for toes adorning feet like upended monoliths. Legs like tree trunks, with blue rings running down them, tattooed onto the monster's rock-like, grey skin. He wore a leather tunic and matching shorts, leaving his arms bare, which bore more blue stripes. In place of hair, a mass of angular black horns protruded from his scalp, and a cloak made of thin black streamers billowed in his wake. Obsidian eyes gleamed malevolently, with black fangs bared.

"Seriously, what is that thing?" Pierce demanded.

"It's an Etherious! One of the stronger ones, too!" Boomer snapped as he avoided the grove of trees that had been his downfall previously, and skittered onto the main road.

"Etherious? Like, Zeref's demons?" Pierce gasped. "Why is there an Etherious chasing us?"

"Because he's bored, most likely," Boomer rolled his eyes as they entered town. With a series of deft turns, the Sonic Boom navigated the streets leading towards the town square, where the Garuda was docked, and even as the Etherious behind them casually strode over or crushed buildings, the magicmobile's speed meant it wasn't long before they were coming up on the broadside hull of the Garuda. Which looked to be preparing for take-off.

"Uh, Boomer?" Pierce blanched. To him, it seemed like Boomer planned to smash straight into the side of the airship, and he wasn't sure whether it was the hull or the windscreen that would break first. "Boomer?!"

And then, with a flash of light, the Sonic Boom warped straight into the Garuda's insides.

Sarph looked up in shock as, mere inches away, where there had previously been empty space, a silver and white three-wheeled vehicle had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. He immediately stood up from where he was tending to Grace, and reached for his sword - but slumped in relief as the door opened and Boomer emerged, rapidly followed by Pierce. "Boomer. Good to see you're alright," the Archive wizard grinned.

Further conversation was forestalled by Pierce's impassioned cry of "Grace!" He dashed over to the unconscious Dragon Slayer, laid out on one of the crew bunk beds, and hovered over her protectively. "What happened?"

"A monster tore out her control lacrima," Sarph summarised, showing him the five grey marbles in his hand. "I'm trying to repair the damage, but I'm not really sure how . . her condition is unique, there's no data that my Archive can draw upon,"

"She's stable for now, right?" Boomer asked, and with a nod from Sarph, he continued. "Then we have bigger problems. There's a thirty-foot Etherious bearing down on us, we need to get into the air!"

"We noticed. Tyria and Hare are on it," Sarph nodded, even as Boomer made for the ladder leading above decks. "Pierce, I hate to say it, but Grace is going to have to wait. We need to deal with this monster first, before it can escape Ghoulia,"

Pierce gritted his teeth, but knew Sarph was right. "Okay. Let's make this fast," he agreed, and both wizards followed Boomer above decks.

They walked right into the middle of a fight. The Garuda was slowly gaining altitude, with Hare manning the controls. Tyria and Boomer were launching gunfire and sonic blasts in the direction of the demon advancing on the ship, and seemingly slowing it down.

"Alright, punk. It's time for some answers!" Hare snapped at Boomer from the tiller. "Exactly what kind of mess have you gotten us all into?!"

"Uh . . isn't this a bad time?" Boomer retorted, but Hare, Pierce and Tyria shouted, "NO!"

"Fine. When I was a kid, I lived here, in Ghoulia, alright - Sonic Blast!" the Sound wizard interrupted himself, launching a barrage of energy to deflect a plasma projectile that the monster had thrown at them.

"Pathetic!" All five wizards started as the demon spoke for the first time. "This is the greatest opposition this world can give me? I shall grind you all into dust!"

"Don't interrupt me!" Boomer hollered. "My parents were dark wizards, belonging to a cult obsessed with the revival of Zeref," he rushed out. "They had in their possession a -"

The Sound wizard was sent sprawling by a small orb of plasma as the monster crouched down, so they could better see his grey face. He was grinning malevolently. "And why do you think I care for what you have to say? I am Goliath, "Monarch of the Shaking Earth", and you puny humans have no chance at defeating me!"

Sarph's Aera wings materialised, and he readied Solamion. "I'll distract him. Finish your story, the information could prove vital," he commanded Boomer, flying out from the shelter of the Garuda's gasbag.

"Your parents were cultists?" Tyria demanded, shocked.

"Emphasis on 'were'," Boomer frowned as he picked himself up. "When I was young, I wanted to know what all the fuss was about. And my dad had this book, which he always used whenever he and mum did dark rituals. This book, as it happens," he pulled 'The Darkened Book - Regykraeon' out of the back of his black jumper. "I didn't know what it was at the time. I just wanted to have fun like my parents," he gulped, remorse and grief in his expression. "But I had no idea what I was doing, and I released the demon trapped in the book,"

"That thing?" Tyria gestured at Goliath, who was swatting at Sarph like a fly.

"No, Regykraeon, an air demon. He'd been trapped in the book for hundreds of years, so he was grateful to me for releasing him. So grateful that he decided to kill everyone in the town in my honour," Boomer gulped. "I would have been his first victim, but one of the stipulations in the release spell was that he couldn't come within five feet of the person who released him for a year after he'd been released. I was safe, and because I didn't let his book leave my hand, so was it . . . but everyone else died, and it was all my fault,"

Tyria gasped. Hare's frown grew deeper than usual, and Pierce rested a hand on his shoulder. "It's okay. It wasn't your fault, you didn't know," he reassured Boomer.

Blinking back tears, the Sound wizard continued. "The Magic Council investigated, of course, but they never figured out what happened. Who would think a nine-year-old boy could be responsible for killing thousands of people?" He sighed. "I spent a year in a state orphanage. I was determined to make amends for my sins, and seal Regykraeon back in this book," he continued, tapping the object in his hands. "I learnt Sound magic because it was an effective counter to Regykraeon's Atmosphere Curse, and when I was old enough to strike out on my own, I went and joined a wizarding guild to get by,"

"Phoenix's Eye," Tyria realised.

"I spent five years telling myself that when I was strong enough, when I was fast enough, when I could beat him, I would come back here and fix my mistake . . even if it killed me," Boomer finished, looking down. "But I had no idea he wanted to release one of his kin. Me and Pierce beat him, but he decided to sacrifice himself to summon that monster rather than lose to us,"

"You should have told us. We could have helped," Pierce sternly told him, and Boomer nodded. "I know. I just felt like I needed to do this by myself,"

"Well, that's all great," Hare huffed. "But how does it help us beat that thing?" she demanded, gesturing at Goliath, who just barely missed hitting Sarph as he dug his sword into the demon's shoulder.

"It doesn't," Boomer reluctantly admitted.

"Well, that's just great," the green-clad wizard rolled her eyes.

"So what?" Pierce challenged. He looked around at the guild and smiled. "We're Phoenix's Eye. We're part of the best guild in Fiore! And, more to the point, we're one of the most destructive guilds in Fiore. So the one time we actually need to destroy something, you want to just back down? Hell no!"

"Well, what are you suggesting?" Tyria asked. "Attack willy-nilly and wear it down?"

"Exactly!" Pierce nodded with a fierce grin, pumping his fist.

With a crash, Sarph was flung backwards, landing on the deck with a dazed expression.

"No puny mortal can best Goliath! I am invincible!" Goliath crowed, glaring down at the five wizards. "Now, who would like to die first?" he leered.

Suddenly, there was a loud crack, punctuated by a shout; "Reality Dragon's Roar!" The five looked over in surprise as Grace emerged from a patch of bent space and unleashed a blast of grey energy that smashed into Goliath's neck. "What are you waiting for? Attack!" she commanded, before vanishing back into the folds of reality.

It was the pushing point that the team needed, as Sarph, clutching his head, sat up. "I'm not out yet," he declared, rematerialising his Aera and snatching Boomer up by the jumper as he leapt into the air.

"Come on, guys! We'll set fire to the sky, and bring it crashing down on his head!" Pierce cheered, drawing breath. As Pierce played his flute, Raya emerged, and both he and Hare mounted the Phoenix as she took off. Tyria shouted, "TechType: Motorbike!" and, forming her motorcycle, shot off the deck, hovering fifteen feet in the air as it was, landing on the ground and speeding towards the enemy.

Goliath started to laugh, amused by the resistance the Wizards were putting up - until Boomer's boombox fired up, blasting waves of sound throughout the town. "Ouch!" he screamed, clutching at his ears. With a flourish, Raya let Hare leap off and land on Goliath's shoulder, before she and Pierce swooped around and, with a cry of "Solar Blast!" scorched his face with searing orange fire. He looked at his empty hand and groaned. "I should buy that sword sometime,"

"Stop that! Stop that now!" Goliath bellowed, before a sudden searing pain in his foot alerted him that something else was wrong. He looked down, to see Tyria, with her hands morphed into TechType: Drill, shredding a hole in his ankle, and screamed as her metal drill hit his bone.

"Hare! Catch!" Sarph shouted, throwing Solamion in her general direction. In a blur, Hare leapt up and snatched the sword out of the air, and, while suspended in mid-air, regarded it with curiosity, before shaking her head and dropping it. "No thanks!" she declared, before tensing her palms in what Pierce recognised as Requip magic. In a sudden flash, a giant saucepan appeared out of nowhere in her hands, and Hare grinned, swinging the black weapon in a massive arc that slammed into Goliath's nose, all while still suspended it mid-air.

Raya swooped past as Hare fell, targeting the inside of Goliath's mouth with another blast of fire. As she did, Pierce pressed his flute to his mouth and called, "Inky, I hope you're ready!"

All at once, blasts of ink blinded Goliath as more burns erupted inside his mouth. Sarph swooped in and hovered near his ear, letting Boomer blast a heavy beat of headache-inducing sound into his ear. And, at his feet, Tyria had evidently decided to target his other foot, because the pain in his heels redoubled.

Unable to stand, the giant fell to his knees. Hare took advantage of the new position to race down the angle of his back and jam the end of her giant saucepan's handle into a pressure point between Goliath's spine segments, and the giant screamed, pitching forwards and throwing his hands out to catch himself on hands and knees.

On the ground, Tyria jumped up and climbed up Goliath's foot, dismissing her Drill. "You're overdue for a spanking! TechType: Tectonics!" she declared, throwing a mighty left-handed punch into his rear.

"Stop that! I am Goliath, I am immortal!" the demon shouted, trying to build charges of plasma in his hands.

Sarph suddenly hovered in front of his face with a grin. "Look what I just found," he smirked, hefting Solamion in both hands, before swooping down and driving it into Goliath's throat.

The giant managed one final moan, before it died in his cut throat and he fell to the ground, dead. The ground shook as his corpse impacted, flattening several buildings and sending small tremors throughout the ghost town. The five wizards regrouped in front of the monster's face. "Is it over?" Tyria warily asked.

Slowly, cracks spread throughout the monster's body, and, piece by piece, the monster broke apart, disintegrating into rubble. The nose that Hare had broken with her saucepan rolled forwards and stopped in front of them, and Sarph smirked. "Yep. It's over,"

This provided Pierce the opportunity to ask Hare a pressing question. "You kept the saucepan? Why did you keep those mercenaries' saucepan?" he demanded.

"Because it's cool, and I already spent a week learning basic Requip magic so that I could use it," Hare huffed. "Got a problem with that?"

"No,"

"Wait," Tyria frowned, looking around. "Where's Grace?"

~P's E~

In a camoflauged hideout on the smallest peak of the mountain, a man covered entirely in white fabric, with deep blue eyes and a chin coated with blond stubble, watched as Goliath's body disintegrated. "Well done, Phoenix's Eye," he commented. "You win today. But there's always tomorrow,"

~P's E~

Grace, as it turned out, was still, on board the Garuda, and still unconscious. Sarph theorised it was likely she would remain in that state until her control lacrima could be returned.

"But if she's been here the whole time, then how did she land the first blow on Goliath?" Pierce questioned. Sarph had no answers.

And so it was that the Garuda returned to Magnolia. The combined efforts of Master Feng and Astro were sufficient to restore Grace, and the young Dragon Slayer awoke, no more the worse for wear.

"I still can't quite figure out exactly why her magic was being released like that," Feng admitted to Pierce, quietly enough that she thought Grace could not overhear.

However, the guild master failed to take into account the strengthened senses of a Dragon Slayer, and Grace heard fine. She smiled to herself, spotting a pair of glossy, alien eyes watching from a dark corner. "Thanks, Quarla," she whispered as the eyes vanished.

It didn't take long for life to return to . . . well, what passed for normal in Phoenix's Eye. And so, the remainder of the month of September in the year X784 passed mostly without incident.

October, however, was another story . . .

~P's E~

Boomer stroked the cover of The Darkened Book - Regykraeon thoughtfully. With its matching demon no longer in existence, the dark magic within it had dried up, and it was just another book now. "You've dominated my life for six years,"

Reaching up, he placed the book back on his shelf, scooped up a blanket, and placed it over the cursed tome. "But now?" He smiled. "I've got a different tune to play,"

 _~P's E~_

 _"Welcome back to Doctor Kit's Documentaries on Phoenix's Eye!" Kit grinned. "Today, we're discussing in greater detail Technow's structure for the order of arcs, and his creative process for original arcs like Sonic Boom!"_

 _"It's been previously mentioned that Technow interchanges canon arcs and original arcs sequentially. However, he eliminates the canon arcs that there's no reasonable way for Phoenix's Eye to actually get involved in, such as the Tower of Heaven, and includes only the canon arcs that our heroes would get dragged into. So far, though, the only arcs that are green-lit to be skipped are Galuna Island, Tower of Heaven, and waaaaaay into the future, Zodiac Eclipse. Though, admittedly, no one here's really decided whether we should include the 'filler' arcs that are only in the anime, or skip over them and only do the ones that happened in the manga. So, we'd like opinions on that!"_

 _"Now, in regard to how the original arc plotlines are drawn up. Technow has noticed that there is a very common structure to the canon arcs; there's a group of bad guys with an overlord who has some kind of evil plot to do something bad, and in a series of one-on-one or two-on-one duels, every individual member of the bad guy group is defeated by one of the main heroes. The Oracion Seis' Six Prayers, Phantom Lord's Element Four, the Seven Kin of Purgatory, the six members of the Garou Knights, it's recurring and incredibly BORING!" Kit huffed._

 _"So, when the original arcs are drawn up, Technow tries to avoid that typical structure. It didn't work out so well during Sonic Boom, but during the next original arc, which will come between Oracion Seis and Edolas, there's gonna be a completely revolutionary plot model that should be way more interesting than that typical 'fight, fight, fight, win!' structure,"_

 _"That's all for now! See yas, on DK's Ds!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **And there. That's Sonic Boom over and done with! Now, time for Oracion Seis . . . though I might have to make a couple of minor retcons. Nothing important, nothing worth re-reading for, just a minor thing or two to tidy things up in preparation for the next arc. Anyway, peace!**

 **~P's E~**

A darkened room, deep in the bowels of a castle floating in the sky. A little girl dressed as a scientist with two rabbit-like ears hummed to herself as she pressed buttons on a console. "I'm so glad this is working! I had my doubts, but Mard Geer really came through!"

She looked up at the two occupied vats; one containing a human-like demoness who was currently unconscious, the other holding a shimmering blue shape. "Oh, you're up! This is so great! How do you feel?"

A deep, throaty chuckle emerged from the vat. "I feel . . . good. It looks like I get the last laugh, little chicken . . . because the joke's on you!"


	24. Five Pillars Aligned

Chapter 24: Five Pillars Aligned

On the third day in the month of November, the year X784, Master Feng called a meeting for the entire guild. Almost everyone showed up, and Pierce's little band were congregated around their normal table, eagerly awaiting the news.

"What do you think this is about?" Boomer asked, interested.

"Beats me, but Kana isn't here," Pierce observed.

"What does that mean?" Grace frowned. She knew the tanned alcoholic from Fairy Tail.

"That means that Fairy Tail's probably holding a similar meeting to us, which would imply that something's going on that involves both guilds," the Tamer explained, and Grace nodded.

"I don't suppose you have any insight?" Tyria asked Artorias, who had elected to join them. The S-Class wizard shrugged. "Nope. But hey, we'll find out soon,"

A piercing whistle echoed through the guild hall, and all eyes looked up to the S-Class balcony, where Master Feng was leaning on the balcony impatiently. "Everyone shut up!" she hollered, rolling her eyes. It took a moment or two, but the entire guild quietened down and paid attention to their master.

"Finally," Feng moaned. She tossed a lacrima into the air, where it hovered and projected a light screen depicting four names linked by a trapezoid, with four lists of more names underneath them and one name off to the side. "Does everyone recognise this?" she demanded.

And Pierce did. It was a diagram depicting the national structure of Fiore's dark guilds. The Balam Alliance, consisting of the Oracion Och, Grimoire Heart, Kairos End, and Tartaros, with each of the smaller dark guilds underneath the name of the big four member who they served under. And then Raven Tail off to the side, because they were independent . . and Severed Tusk listed beneath Oracion Och. He quelled his anger and focused back on Master Feng.

But Feng herself had stopped paying attention. Instead she was looking up and casting around, as though attempting to detect some elusive scent. "Oh dear. She's back," she commented.

"Who's back?" Tyria frowned, looking at Pierce, whose eyes widened. "Uh," He whistled through his teeth. "Remember I mentioned that there was one more S-Class wizard in Phoenix's Eye?" he asked.

"The one who terrifies you and you don't like talking about?" Tyria immediately recalled.

"Yeah. Every now and then she comes by the guild and gets a job from the back of the S-Class board," Pierce explained.

Forestalling Tyria's question, Artorias took over. "The back of the S-Class board is where the most difficult jobs of them all are. The SS-Class jobs, and the Decade Quests - jobs that no Wizard has been able to complete for ten years, and not for lack of trying," he explained. "Even I wouldn't take an SS-Class job without serious consideration,"

"But she never takes any jobs that aren't SS-Class or higher," Pierce explained, shivering.

"You shouldn't be so afraid. Faraday is immensely powerful, but she is not a threat to her guildmates," Artorias explained.

"Faraday? Is that her name?" Tyria asked, but was ignored.

"Says the only Wizard in the guild who can even dream of matching her strength, short of Master!" the Tamer protested.

The conversation was abruptly brought to a halt as the doors of the guild hall swung open, as was all sound in the building. Every eye watched the door, and the slim figure, wrapped in a grey cloak with green trim that obscured her entire body and her face, covering her hair, and hanging to the ground to block her feet from sight. The only gap in her cloak was her eyes, which were a dull, almost burnt orange and remained fixed forwards, like an owl's. There was a pack on her back, from which protruded four staves, two above each of her shoulders; one made of wood that ended in what looked like a magnifying glass which bore a crown of white feathers, the second made of silver metal that ended in what resembled a spanner, with a bronze gear wedged into it, the third also metal, but black, crowned by a black ball covered in fuzzy fabric, and the fourth made of a green substance that ended with a simple white leather ribbon around it.

Everyone watched, completely silent, as Faraday walked into the building, the four weapons slung to her back twitching with every step. She strode forwards without even looking around, reaching the primary job board and immediately turning left, making for one of the stairs. With bated breath, the rest of the guild observed as Faraday strode up the stairs, past Master Feng without even a look of acknowledgement, and to the S-Class request board, which suddenly, seemingly of its own volition, rose into the air and flipped itself upside-down as it approached, revealing that there was a second board on the back. If Faraday was bothered by reading upside-down, she didn't show it, and a moment later, she selected a job from the board and stuffed it into a pocket in her cloak. As soon as she did, the board returned to its normal orientation and crashed to the ground.

The silence was unbroken as Faraday left the upper floor. Some of the guild members with better ears could have sworn that Feng said something along the lines of "You don't have to be such a show-off," as she passed, but no one voiced the opinion as Faraday returned to the ground floor and left the guild hall.

"Anyway, where was I?" Feng took a moment to recollect her thoughts.

"So, that was the strongest wizard in Phoenix's Eye?" Tyria whispered.

"So intense," Grace breathed.

"She isn't so bad," Artorias shrugged. "Granted, she's never said more than two words to me at a time . . which is a tad insulting . . but that's just the way she is,"

But silence fell again as the guild realised Feng was ready to continue. "This is a diagram of the structure of the Balam Alliance, comprised of the four strongest dark guilds in Fiore. And I recently received a letter from the Magic Council stating that a plan has been put into place to topple one of those guilds!" she declared, pointing straight at the label marked 'Oracion Och'. "Five guilds are forming a coalition, sending their strongest and best members to work together and defeat the Oracion Och! And one of these is Phoenix's Eye!" she rapidly explained. "The only question is, who am I going to send?" the Fire wizard mused, looking around the room as if she hadn't already decided exactly who to send.

The rest of the guild, however, didn't know this, and looked around, wondering who was going to be chosen.

"Artorias!" No one was surprised, Pierce reflected. Short of Feng herself, Artorias was the strongest wizard present. He was a shoo-in for the Coalition. Actually, now that he thought about it, Artorias usually didn't stay at the guild for this long at a time . . Feng had probably known that this Coalition event was going to happen for a while and specifically asked him last month or something to hang around until it happened.

Admittedly, he was a little surprised Feng hadn't tried to rope Faraday into it, but he'd never heard of Faraday working together with anyone.

"Sarph!" From the bar, Sarph raised his sword in triumph, and grinned. Another expected choice, Pierce agreed. Both of the available S-Class wizards (as Garrotte had recently left on a long-term job) had been selected . . . but who else would make it?

"Pierce!" Again, exactly . . . . "WHAT?" Pierce gasped, looking at Master Feng in shock. "Why are you sending me? I'm not a powerhouse! I can't beat dark wizards on a level like that!"

"Well, yes, you can. I'm certain," the guild master nodded in a manner that left no room for argument. "But, that said, I have an ulterior motive for choosing you," Feng sighed, flicking her wrist and bringing up a fuzzy image of a member of the Oracion Och on the screen. With flexes of her fingers, she zoomed in on the warrior known as Cobra, who seemed to have a huge purple snake coiled around his body. "This is Cobra. He keeps a giant, poisonous snake as a pet and partner in combat. The Magic Council has debated this, and they have decided that they cannot charge an animal with criminal activities. It would be embarrassing for them. As a result, they specifically told me that the only user of Beast Tamer Magic in all five guilds in the Coalition must be personally asked to join in, in order to rescue and rehabilitate that snake," she shook her head. "I can't force you to go if you continue to object, but if you don't, then that unfortunate creature is likely to be put down," she explained.

But Pierce's jaw had already set as soon as he heard that a beast could be in danger. "Screw that. Sign me up!" he declared.

"I thought you'd say that," Feng chuckled. "Now, who else?"

Boomer, Grace and Tyria's hands immediately shot up, all ready to assist their teammates. Several glares convinced Hare to roll her eyes and grudgingly raise a finger.

Feng cast the rest of Pierce's group a patient look. "No, Grace. You aren't strong enough to face the Och," she shook her head. "Boomer, I won't let you go either. I'm not convinced that you're ready for a mission of this magnitude, especially after the fiasco at Ghoulia," Her gaze focused on Hare. "Hare, I can tell that you don't even want to go, and I'm only going to send wizards who are willing to give it their all," she shook her head, before finally turning to Tyria. "Tyria . . . do you think you can handle this mission?" Master Feng asked, and the tech wizard immediately nodded. "Can do, Master,"

The guild master smiled. "Very well then. We have our four members of the coalition! I wish you all the best of luck,"

"So, what's the plan?" Sarph asked.

"Five guilds are going to be present; Phoenix's Eye, Fairy Tail, Blue Pegasus, Lamia Scale, and Cait Shelter," Feng explained. "The plan is to use the combined forces to force all members of the Oracion Och into a single selected area, where we will use our Garuda's newly installed magic missiles to blow them up in one fell swoop," she smiled. "Simple and effective. You leave this evening, and will arrive at the rendezvous point tomorrow morning," She clapped her hands. "Dismissed!"

~P's E~

"You'll be okay without me?" Pierce gently asked Grace, who nodded. "I'll be fine for a few days, don't worry," she smiled. "Besides, Garred promised he'd keep an eye on me,"

Pierce thought of the alcoholic man and winced. "Why does that not make me feel better?"

Grace giggled. "Seriously, I'll be alright," she nodded, and Pierce nodded as well. "Alright. I'll be back in a few days," He ruffled her hair, before grabbing his bag and preparing to leave.

"Pierce?" The Tamer immediately turned back at Grace's voice, only to see her suddenly appear out of a small bend in reality, wrap her arms around him, and kiss his cheek. "I love you. Goodbye," she nodded, sliding down.

Pierce bent down and kissed Grace's forehead. "I love you too,"

~P's E~

The four Phoenixes reclined on the deck of the Garuda, which had been set to autopilot by way of being pointed in the right direction and the tiller tied in place with rope. As the boys sunbathed, Tyria was doing something with a series of blue screens that looked somewhat similar to Sarph's Archive magic.

"What's that?" Pierce asked, sidling over.

"I'm trying to code a new spell," Tyria explained. "I think I'm going to need it,"

"'Code' a spell?" Pierce repeated, confused.

"Oh - my magic isn't just aesthetically mechanical. TechType magic is kind of like Maker magic, in that the user has to create their own spells. Each of my spells is like a computer program that I've made manually, and if I want more spells, I need to build them from the ground up," the foreign wizard summarised.

"That's . . . interesting?" Pierce had never heard of magic working like that. Electrian magic really was different to Fiorean magic.

"It's more advanced. You know how Lost Magic gives people glimpses of what magic was like in the past?" Tyria raised her eyebrows, and her teammate nodded. "Electria prefers to look to the future. This is what magic's gonna be like everywhere in a few hundred years,"

"I doubt it," Artorias weighed in, walking towards them. "Electria has its own evolving techniques, but here in Fiore I don't think the majority of people are ever going to choose a technique that's so reliant on the user's intelligence over natural intuition,"

"Maybe," Tyria evidently didn't like the idea.

"Well, either way," Artorias shrugged. "I'm going to bed. Goodnight," he waved, striding over and climbing down the ladder leading below decks.

Pierce and Tyria settled back down, casting absent-minded glances at Sarph, who was on the tiller. However, a pitched call from Artorias - the blood wizard never shouted - attracted their attention. "Pierce? Tyria? Can you two come down here?" he demanded.

In minutes, the two wizards were below decks with the Blood Mage, who was standing over a large shape covered by a canvas, wearing an expression that was as irritated as the tranquil mage ever got. "I suppose you two know nothing about this?" he asked, and they shook their heads.

With a mighty sweep, Artorias pulled the blanket off, revealing the Sonic Boom in all its glory. And, in the driver's seat, Boomer was crashed out, using the inert dashboard as a pillow. In the passenger's seats behind him, Grace was lying across the two seats with a blanket.

"I'm not even surprised," Pierce admitted with a slight shrug. He had seem the expression on Boomer's face after Master Feng declared him ineligible for the Coalition, and had half expected the Sound wizard to try something like this. He was less certain about Grace's motivations, but he would definitely talk to her about it. "I'd better check Hare isn't tied up in the boot. If she is, she might not have enough air,"

Tyria stared after the Tamer, flabbergasted. "That's your reaction to this?!" she demanded.

"Well, we are Phoenix's Eye. All of us. Breaking the rules is practically in the guild manifest," Artorias shrugged, walking towards the beds at the other end of the hull. "Goodnight,"

~P's E~

"Well?" Grace awoke to Pierce seated next to her, in the rear of the Sonic Boom and looking down at her with folded arms and a mildly stern expression. It was early in the morning, and Pierce had deliberately woken early to catch Grace when she awoke.

The young Dragon Slayer took a moment to wake up, rubbing her eyes. "Good morning," she softly moaned.

"Why are you here?" the Tamer pressed.

"Because I'm a phoenix dragon. I can help," Grace resolutely replied.

Pierce couldn't help but smile a little at that, but immediately hid it. "There's a difference between being a phoenix dragon, and being strong enough to fight powerful dark wizards like the Oracion Och," he reprimanded her.

"I know," Grace conceded, balling her fists. The Tamer noted with some alarm that reality began to ripple around the edges of her hands, but Grace immediately quelled the loss of focus and continued. "But I can't just let you go and fight for me while I sit on the sidelines and watch," she shook her head.

"It's not just for you, it's -" Pierce started, but the Dragon Slayer interrupted him. "Crypt's Spawn was a guild that worked under the Och," she stated.

Pierce' eyes widened at the mention of the dark guild that had been responsible for Grace's condition. "How do you -?"

"I may not have my memories, but I still did some digging. Sarah told me the name, and Magnolia's library has enough information about the structure of dark guilds for me to put it together," Grace clarified. "And the guy in charge of the Och? One of his hobbies is to conduct experiments to create new and powerful kinds of magic," she continued. "It doesn't take a genius to work it out,"

Pierce nodded. "Yeah. Brain is the guy who was behind your becoming a Dragon Slayer,"

"So I can't just wait at home while you go off to fight him," Grace declared. "I'm gonna see him go down,"

Pierce mulled this over, and smiled in spite of himself, before fixing his guildmate with a stern expression. "It things go wrong, I want you to get out immediately," he commanded, and Grace nodded. "I mean it. No heroics, no risking yourself. Just run,"

"Okay," the greenette agreed, and Pierce's expression softened. "Alright. Welcome aboard,"

"What?" Both wizards turned to see Boomer blearily glaring at them from the front seat. "Don't I get any lectures about safety and not risking myself?"

All three just laughed.

~P's E~

The Garuda landed behind the vacation house belonging to Bob, Guild Master of Blue Pegasus.

"Seriously, is no one going to say anything about Boomer and Grace stowing away?" Tyria demanded of the boys. Sarph, Artorias and Pierce all looked at each other, and shrugged in unison. "They're here now, they might as well help. Right, Arty?" Sarph summed up, and Artorias nodded with a faint air of irritation. Behind them, Boomer fist-pumped.

So it was that the five Phoenixes entered the meeting hall, finding it already partially occupied. "Hey, look, it's Percy and Pharaoh's Lie!" Natsu Dragneel grinned as they arrived.

"Not even close," Pierce sweatdropped. "We went over this during the fight against Laxus. My name is Pierce Blastreyne, and our guild is named Phoenix's Eye," he exasperatedly corrected the hotheaded Dragon Slayer.

"I see the representatives from Fairy Tail and Blue Pegasus have already arrived," Sarph observed.

A short, tanned man with a mane of reddish brown hair suddenly appeared in front of the delegation. "And on behalf of Blue Pegasus, I give you all my most warm and heartfelt welcome. Maaaaaaaaan," Ichiya Vandalay Kotobuki greeted the group, bowing deeply.

"It is . . pleasant to meet you," Pierce managed to splutter out, taking the lead of the group as he led his companions into the room. Sarph noticed this, and nodded. Pierce was a natural leader, it was obvious to anyone who observed him at the right time . . . which meant Pierce himself was clueless.

Tyria was immediately swarmed by a trio of young men, one of which somehow produced a table and a drink out of nowhere, before leaning on it and looking away. "You can drink that if you want, but I didn't make it for you or anything," he shrugged at her without even introducing himself. Tyria had just enough time to splutter; "Uh . . are you trying to be coy?" before the shortest of the three boys pulled her away and gazed up at her, asking, "Tell me, would you like a little brother?"

Pierce was about to intervene, but a blonde Fairy Tail wizard got there first, extricating Tyria from the three flirts. "Okay, that's quite enough of that," Lucy declared, pulling Tyria away. "Ignore them. Everyone in Blue Pegasus is a shameless flirt," she huffed. The Tamer spotted the youngest of the boys casting a glance in Grace's direction, and he placed a hand on the Dragon Slayer's shoulder, while casting the boy the fiercest glance he could. Eve hastily backed away.

Looking around, Erza and Artorias were hosting their own reunion. "It's a pleasure to see you again, Miss Scarlet," the quiet man greeted her, and the Requip mage smiled. "Likewise, Artorias, but I've told you before; Erza is fine,"

Pierce cast a wary glance at Natsu as he approached Grace, but the hotheaded boy was indifferent as he smiled at her. "So, you're Pony Sigh's baby dragon, right? It's nice to finally meet you!"

"You too! You were the first Dragon Slayer around! I'm honoured!" Grace grinned, and Pierce decided that there was nothing to worry about other than Natsu's continued mangling of their guild's name.

"Pfft. Being first is nothing compared to being strongest, and there's no way I'm letting a rival guild's Dragon Slayer go without giving me a good fight!" Pierce sweatdropped. Then again . . .

"Nice to see you too, Gray," Pierce greeted the black-haired Fairy, who smiled in response. "Ignore Flame-brain. He's the only one who's too dumb to know your guild's name,"

"What's that supposed to mean, icy prick?" Natsu immediately challenged, his fists lighting up with fire.

"It means that either your ears, your brain, or both are defective," Gray snorted.

"They are not!" the Dragon Slayer roared, before pausing and inching over to Pierce. "What does 'defective' mean?" he whispered to the Tamer, who rolled his eyes and engaged in a brief fantasy in which a chibi version of himself hit a chibi Natsu over the head with a sign marked 'STUPID'.

"I see that Fairy Tail is as unruly as ever," a new voice echoed from the doorway, and the entire on of wizards turned to see three newcomers in the doorway.

"Lyon?" Gray demanded in surprise.

"Indeed," a silver-haired boy smiled. "I decided to take your advice, Gray, and join a guild myself. And I've even found a new idol to seek to surpass," he declared, gesturing to one of his companions. Pierce paused, taking in the tall man who flanked Lyon and his pink-haired teammate. Sarph was similarly shocked, and impressed. "Iron-Rock Jura," the S-Class wizard smiled, striding towards the dark-skinned man. "It is an honour," Sarph inclined his head in respect as he offered a hand for a shake, which Jura gratefully took. "Likewise," the Wizard Saint nodded, taking notice of the claymore strapped to Sarph's back. "That is a very impressive sword," the man observed. "I can sense some very powerful Wave enchantments on it,"

"Who's that guy? Is he a big deal?" Pierce heard Tyria whisper to Lucy, who nodded frantically. "That's Iron-Rock Jura. He's one of the Ten Wizard Saints, the ten most powerful legal wizards in Fiore!" Lucy replied, and Tyria softly gasped at this. "Wow,"

The pink-haired girl giggled, hearing this as she went to join the other two teenaged girls. "Don't worry. Jura can be intimidating, but he's still nice," Shelley grinned.

Pierce continued to watch everything around him as Ichiya decided to introduce himself. "Greetings, Master Jura. It is an honour to inhale your wonderful parfume! Maaaaaaaan!" he cooed, dipping into a deep bow.

Jura released Sarph's grip, nodded respectfully at Ichiya, and looked around. "I see we're late," he commented as the members of each guild finished their conversations and slowly drifted back to their guildmates. "Fairy Tail, Phoenix's Eye, Blue Pegasus and Lamia Scale. All we're missing is Cait Shelter," he observed.

"Indeed. I can't help but notice that Fairy Tail sent five members, and Phoenix's Eye six," Lyon started, but Pierce, immediately seeing where he was going with this, hastened to present a lessening of his guild's reputation. "Actually, Master Feng sent four. We just had a couple of stowaways," he clarified.

Lyon sniffed disdainfully. "Blue Pegasus sent four, and Lamia Scale only three," he observed.

"Well," one of Blue Pegasus' Trimens, the Caucasian one with glasses whose name Pierce didn't know, spoke up. "I heard that Cait Shelter is only sending one wizard,"

"Seriously?" Boomer gasped in surprise. "Man, how crazy intense is this guy gonna be?" he nervously wondered.

The four guilds' members looked at each other, and the dark-skinned Trimen chuckled. "Who wants to take a bet? Ten jewels says he'll be that guy-level intense," he gestured at Artorias, who wrinkled his nose slightly at the description, "fifty if he's Jura-level intense," Jura inclined his head at the acknowledgement, "and a hundred if he's boss-level intense," Ichiya punctured the accompanying gesture towards him with a hearty "Maaaaaaaaaan,"

There was a sudden scuffing noise, and everyone turned to see a young girl with blue hair done in pigtails sprawled on the floor just inside the entrance. "Owie," she muttered, picking herself up, and as she did, the Cait Shelter guild mark was revealed on her shoulder.

"Dude, I think you just lost your money," Boomer observed.

"Are you the representative of Cait Shelter?" Sarph kindly asked the newcomer, and she nodded. "I'm Wendy Marvel," she paused, uncertain of what to say. "I know I don't look like much, and I'm not a very good fighter . . . but I know a lot of Support Magic, and I can really help. So please don't send me home, it would be so embarrassing,"

"Don't worry. No one wanted to send me home," Grace piped up, and Wendy looked surprised and excited to see another girl her own age.

"Don't be so subservient, child!" Pierce's eyes boggled as a small, white cat, of similar ilk to Happy and Garrotte, wearing a tiny dress, entered the hall behind Wendy and promptly told her off. "You need to put up a strong impression! Make them want to have you!"

"Sorry, Carla,"

"Stop apologising!" the cat snapped.

"Well!" Jura took command, as one of the Blue Pegasus boys started doing something with magic. "We have all arrived. Now, Hibiki, would you care to explain the plan?" Pierce noted with surprise that 'Hibiki' was a user of Archive magic, just like Sarph, as a series of bronze-gold screens appeared, with a central one depicting all eight members of the Oracion Och together. "These are the wizards we have come to defeat," Hibiki declared, focusing on a spindly man in red and white with a shock of blonde hair. "This is Racer. He's lower on the totem pole within the guild, and has been known to use Speed magic,"

"If only Hare were here, eh?" Sarph remarked to Boomer, who shivered. "Don't say that! You should never want Hare to be anywhere near you!" He vehemently protested.

Hibiki brought up the next member, a portly wizard with an oddly geometric face. "This is Hoteye, a money-obsessed man who will commit any atrocity, for the right price. We aren't certain of his capabilities, but we think he's got some kind of mud-related magic, so it's best if wizards that can fly confront him," Hibiki suggested, and Erza smiled.

The third guildsmate of the Och appeared, a pale woman with white hair that dressed in a very revealing cloak. "This is Angel. We haven't been able to pinpoint the exact nature of her magic; it seems to have varied results. Her known abilities include sand, energy beams and, um," Hibiki paused, leaning into the screen. "Wool? That's probably a mistake, but, all the same, keep your guard up,"

The camera shifted to the next member, and Pierce recognised Cobra. "This is Cobra, who is so proficient in Poison magic that he keeps a giant poisonous snake as a pet and partner in battle. However, with any luck the snake will be a non-factor, because we have special measures to get around that threat, and without his pet, Cobra will be severely weakened," Pierce smiled at the recognition as Hibiki gestured at him. "If any of you encounter Cobra without Pierce over there present, do not engage, and, if possible, lead Cobra to him. He's the only one equipped to charm that snake into submission,"

The picture changed again, showing a grainy, fuzzy image of a hulking, dark figure, with a piece of cloth emblazoned with feral-looking teeth over his mouth, a large, black cloak and black hair slicked back, leaving dark eyes visible. "This man is known only as Canceler. He seems to use some kind of stealth magic, because no one ever sees him. We think that he's in charge of Brain's covert operations," Hibiki explained. "This is the only image that's ever been captured of him, and it was taken when he deliberately stood in front of a damaged camera lacrima for long enough for it to register his image, which means that he let himself be seen,"

One more snap, and Hibiki's Archive showed a tall woman with prim blue-green hair, ceremonial-looking white armour armour with black shoulders and a blue cape and sleeves, with some kind of device on her left wrist, and a haughty expression. "Eww," Grace grimaced. "Who's the old lady?" Tyria snorted in amusement at the Dragon Slayer's assessment.

Hibiki stifled a chuckle, and continued. "Here you see Mylene Farrow, the only member of the Och who we have concrete information on," the Trimen explained, bringing up a fine underneath her picture. "Mylene was once a member of the Vexos, an illustrious peacekeeping group in Vestal,"

Pierce nodded to himself. Vestal was a country to the northeast of Fiore, which had recently emerged from a civil war. "After the Vestal King was deposed and the Vexos disbanded, most of them ended up in jail. Mylene, however, escaped to Fiore, where she was apparently taken in by the Och and rose to become one of their strongest members. Vestal magic works differently to Fiorean magic, and because she's a new addition to the guild, we don't have enough data to know what to expect, so be ready for anything when facing her,"

The picture changed again, revealing a sleeping young man with black hair. "This is Midnight. That's all that we know about him, his name and that he likes to sleep," Hibiki shrugged. "He may well be the most dangerous member of the Oracion Och, so take him on with extreme prejudice,"

One more shift, and the screen showed Brain. Hiniki was about to explain him, but he was cut off by Tyria, who gasped. "Professor Inada?" she demanded in shock.

"You know him?" Jura frowned, and Tyria nodded. "Not personally, but I've heard of him. He was a professor back in Electria, but constantly got involved in illegal research. Eventually he got sick of being prevented from pursuing his studies in Electria, and decided to go somewhere where the rules were more lax to pursue his work. That was ten years ago," she explained.

"Makes sense. It's been suspected that Brain had fingers in all kinds of illegal experiments and activities," Hibiki pointed out. Pierce cast a glance at Grace, who was frowning at the image. "It's also believed that he is responsible for giving most of the Och their abilities, through his experiments. We believe that he is the guild master of the Oracion Och, and will no doubt be the most difficult to defeat," the boy explained.

"We don't know exactly what the Oracion Och's plan is, either, however their current location is the Worth Woodsea, due north of here. Worth is also said to be the resting place of Nirvana, an ancient Destruction magic, so it's reasonable to assume that that's what the Och is looking for," the Archive user continued.

"So, how are we going to defeat them?" Sarph asked, and Hibiki grinned. "We're going to split up and lure them all into one place, and from there we will bomb them with Blue Pegasus' Magic Bomber Christina!" he declared, bringing up a massive picture of Blue Pegasus' horse-esque airship. "Wait, won't that kill them?" Lucy demanded, frowning.

"Not if they're as powerful as they claim to be," Erza reassured her. "An assault like that will probably either knock them unconscious or stun them for long enough to be beaten into submission. That said, the goal is to capture them, but if lethal force is necessary, we have a mandate from the Council to use it," she frowned, and Hibiki nodded. "Exactly,"

"Wait, the Christina?" Sarph frowned. "We were told that we would be using Phoenix's Eye's airship, the Garuda," he pointed out.

There was a moment of silence, before Natsu shrugged. "Hey, the more the merrier, right?"

"Ho, yeah!" Boomer agreed. "This way, we get to blow the Och up twice!" At this, the entire coalition cheered, all grinning at each other and united in one moment of comraderie.

Which was interrupted by a beeping alert from Hibiki's Archive. The boy looked at his screen in surprise, before grinning. "Guys, check this out! The entire Och is gathered on the cliffs a few hundred metres away!"

"This is perfect! We can take them all on at once and stall them long enough to launch the bombs!" Pierce grinned.

"Well, what are you all waiting for?" Natsu demanded, his little blue cat right next to him. "Let's go!"

There was a stampede as the entire group rushed out of the hall, all crowing a mighty "YEAH!"

 _~P's E~_

 _"Welcome to Doctor Kit's Documentaries on Phoenix's Eye!" Kit grinned, beaming at the camera. "Our topic for today is . . . uh . . ." The yokai drew out the sound while frantically shuffling through his sheafs of notes. "Giant mushrooms, train stations, catchy music, snowy mountains,_ Chinese pirate ships _. . why does this guy have so many ideas and yet he doesn't have any good topics for DK's Ds?"_

" _That pirate ship is Japanese!"the author corrected from off-stage._

" _Whatever!" Kit retorted._

" _Actually, you know what? Since the Author's Note is so long, I'm not sure we really need a Documentary segment this chapter," Feng realised, and pulled the plug._

" _OI! You can't do that!" Kit frantically protested. "What about my rights? I have a right to screenti-_

A/N

 **A/N**

 **In regards to the first scene with Pierce and Grace, NO THEY ARE NOT GOING TO BE IN A RELATIONSHIP. Grace sees Pierce as an older brother figure, not as a love interest, and Pierce feels similarly about Grace. (Plus, Tyrierce is a thing.)**

 **Also, the Sonic Boom arc may be over, but the Sonic Boom itself is still sticking around. It'll be very helpful to Boomer and his Fairy Tail counterpart, say, during a specific fight in the near future? ;)**

 **So, the final member of Phoenix's Eye's S-Class roster is revealed. Meet Faraday, who, like how Sarph parallels with Erza, Artorias with Mirajane and the Power Twins with Laxus, is an S-Class wizard in Phoenix's Eye with strength comparable to Gildarts. However, all things considered she's probably more like Mystogan - NOT, that is, to say that she is secretly a counterpart to some villain or another from Edolas or another world like Mystogan is. Edolas does a part to play in the future of the story, but it is not pertinent to Faraday. I'm more original than that. XD**

 **And 'Oracion Seis' loosely translates to 'six prayers'. Appropriate, because there's six of them, they each have a prayer, and when all six are defeated, Master Zero gets released. Small problem; Brain has eight lines on his face. One on his forehead, one on his chin, and three on either cheek. So shouldn't the last two lines be significant? That, plus I can't just have the Phoenixes cramping the existing fights (though they will do that), is why I added a couple of extra members to the Seis/Och.**

 **But who? Canceler is a character who was submitted to me by Sushiforsale, so with some alterations he fit the bill (BTW, Sushi, thanks for that!), but Mylene . . . well, is anyone else here reading DigiXBot's 'An Alternate Tail'? (If not, you should.) When s/he was pressed for villains, he decided to bring in a couple of characters from another anime to serve as additional bad guys to beat up. It was brilliant (even though the execution could be improved), so I decided to borrow the idea. Mylene Farrow is a character from one of my favourite anime when I was young, and special props to anyone who can guess where she's from. (Using the internet is cheating, but her background should give you a hint.)**

 **And remember last chapter I mentioned retcons? Those have all now been implemented, but it's mostly typos and changing 'Seis' to 'Och' in previous chapters - EXCEPT that a little scene that foreshadows big things has been added to Chapter 10. So if you care enough, go check that out.**

 **Anyway, sorry for the long author's note, but this was a big, important chapter, and there were a lot of things I felt needed to be addressed. Besides, that's all. Peace!**


	25. The Oracion Och

Chapter 25: The Oracion Och

As the less mature wizards of the coalition dashed out of the vacation house, Jura, Ichiya and Artorias hung back. "This doesn't feel right," the blood wizard commented.

"So, you feel that way as well?" Jura spoke, looking at the Phoenix with new interest. "I agree. It makes no sense for the Och to gather in the open like that,"

"Which means that the rest of the Coalition is running into a trap of some form," Artorias frowned.

"Indeed," Ichiya nodded his assent of the other two's assertion. "However, it's a little more complicated than that,"

"How so?" Jura asked.

"Because while they are running into a trap out there," 'Ichiya's' voice suddenly changed, becoming high-pitched, "you two have fallen into a trap in here! Piri, piri!"

Artorias' eyes suddenly widened. "Look out! The door!" he shouted, already dashing for cover, as Jura did the same. In that moment, Ichiya transformed into a pair of tiny blue gremlins, and a series of energy beams shot forth from the doors.

Angel calmly strolled in, followed by some kind of technological, satellite-like machine. She looked over to the far corners, where Artorias and Jura had separated. "Impressive. Bleeding-Vein Artorias, and Iron-Rock Jura. The two most powerful wizards in the Coalition, some might say,"

She cast a glance at Gemini. "You two, get back to the rest of the Och and cover for me. I have to clean this mess up,"

"Yes, mistress," the Spirits (Spirit?) chirped, and vanished.

"You're right," Artorias softly agreed. "We are the most powerful wizards in the Coalition. Which raises the question," A cruel light entered his eyes. "Why do you think that you can beat us by yourself?"

"My pets will do it for me," Angel shrugged, gesturing to the machine behind her. "Khyber, keep the boy busy while I handle Jura," With beeps of affirmation, the mechanical Spirit hovered towards Artorias, while Angel rounded on the Wizard Saint, producing a small golden object. Jura tensed, recognising it as a Celestial Key of the Zodiac. "Open," she smirked, "Gate of the Ram," With a doorbell, there was a flash of light and Aries, Zodiac Spirit of the Ram, appeared with a nervous whimper.

Jura frowned. "Celestial magic? I can handle that. Iron-Rock Tomb!" A massive room of rock emerged from the ground and enclosed Aries, and Angel raised her eyebrows, stepping back. "Odd," she frowned. "How are you blocking my connection to Aries?"

A whine of tortured metal caught her attention, and she turned to see Khyber clattering to the ground, and Artorias advancing towards her in the other direction. "I'm sorry," he said, sounding like he genuinely meant it. "But I think I broke your toy,"

Angel huffed. "It doesn't matter, anyway. I got what I came for," she smirked, even as she back-pedalled towards the exit.

"And what was that?" Jura demanded.

"I kept you two busy for long enough that the rest of the Och can wipe out the remainder," Angel simpered, before vanishing.

The two paused, before frowning. "We were tricked," Jura realised, and Artorias nodded. "Come. We can still catch up," he declared, running out towards his guildmates.

~P's E~

It wasn't long until the other eighteen wizards of the Coalition were rushing down the last section of the path to the Oracion Och, unaware of the trap they were walking into.

"There they are!" Natsu grinned. "I'm all fired up!"

As the wizards gathered, facing off against the Och, who were waiting patiently - several of them almost looked bored - Hibiki tapped something into his Archive. "Wait!" he called. "Let Christina launch her assault, then we attack!"

Pierce nodded as Natsu was reined in by his guildmates, and above them, the Christina came into view.

"So, who's flying the Christina?" Tyria curiously asked, and Hibiki shook his head. "No one's on board. It's remote controlled with my Archive. Everyone! Watch the skies!"

As one the coalition looked up, eager to see the Christina fire. "Three . . two . ." Hiniki counted, watching his Archive -

And, suddenly, a massive beam of blue energy sliced through the sky, cutting directly through the Christina's hull. There was a moment's pause, and then the ship exploded, smoke billowing from her eviscerated hull. "Oh no!" Lyon gasped as Pierce demanded, "What the hell?"

"Useless," a mocking voice cajoled them, and the wizards turned to see Mylene Farrow standing in front of the rest of her guild. "That thing wasn't a weapon," she tsked, folding her arms. "It was a giant, floating target, and it was so easy for me to destroy," With that, the Vestal sorceress, with a mighty backwards leap, returned to her guild, all of which looked ready for battle . . . with the exception of Midnight, who was sitting, cross-legged, on the ground, fast asleep.

"Grace was right. She is an old lady," Sherry commented with a nod.

"The Christina!" all four members of Blue Pegasus gasped, horrified, before rounding on the Och with new fury. "You'll pay for that!" the Trimens growled, punctuated by Ichiya's vengeful "Maaaaaaaan!"

"I would be very surprised," Brain huffed, stepping forwards and wielding his staff. "Oracion Och?" he raised his eyebrows, casting glances at the wizards around him. "Kill them,"

"You heard him!" Pierce chorused. "Let's kick some ass!" Like surging waves, the two groups charged towards each other, every member readying their spells.

Sarph slashed at Canceler with Solamion, but the blade passed through his image like shadow. "It's some kind of Illusion magic," he realised as the image dissipated, casting around. "Be wary! Canceler could be anywhere!"

Boomer hastily dodged as Racer, using an array of martial arts techniques that would impress Hare, dashed past him and dispatched the Trimens. He was about to engage, but a flaming uppercut got in front of him. "He's mine!" Natsu roared.

The Sound wizard wheeled, and tweaked the settings on his boombox before blasting a funnel of sound at a wave of liquified earth that was sent in his direction by Hoteye, punching through it and letting it pass to either side. Then Lyon was next to him, grinning. "Nice move. Cover me. Icemake: Tiger!"

"TechType: Machine Gun!" Tyria declared, transforming her arm and raining bullets in the general direction of the Och, before falling backwards as an arm erupted from her shadow and punched her in the chest. Canceler chuckled, diving back into the shadows.

Pierce and Lucy stood back to back, one wielding her keys and frantically directing a large minotaur wielding an axe, while the other had his flute pressed to his mouth and was giving a massive cerberus similar instructions. "Gauntlet: Power Strike!" a voice called, and suddenly a blue laser knocked Lucy back. Pierce rounded on the new threat, seeing Mylene advancing on him with a leer, her right hand pressed to a device on her left forearm, and six floating energy cannons in the air around her. He dashed back to protect Lucy, while Brakodidon leapt towards their enemy - only for three of her cannons to detach from their formation and blast him in all three faces, without Mylene even looking. He cast a quick look around to see how the fight was going, and it wasn't good. The Trimens had vanished, and Ichiya was lying unconscious on the ground. Boomer and Lyon were still clashing with Hoteye, protecting a downed Sherry, but they were obviously losing. Gray was staggering to his feet, looking around warily and expecting Canceler to emerge from the shadows at any moment, while Sarph seemed to have distracted Cobra and was using his ability to fly to outmanoeuvre the Poison wizard. Erza and Natsu were taking on Racer, with Erza in full Heaven's Wheel get-up, and Tyria was defending Grace and Wendy from Angel. Brain and Midnight, who was still asleep, were hanging back, and a thought crossed Pierce's mind; where the hell are Jura and Artorias?

Pierce was suddenly knocked backwards by an intensified blue laser, falling to the ground, and Mylene tutted disdainfully. "Don't ignore me," she huffed.

The fight between Sarph and Cobra, and Natsu and Erza's bout with Racer, were drawing close to each other, and, in what could only have been a preplanned maneuver, the two dark wizards switched. Cobra and his snake leapt high, and Racer stepped back, sliding underneath his partner and dealing a surprise blow to Sarph, while Cobra fell down on Erza and Natsu from above, and while the man tackled Natsu to the ground, the serpent landed on Erza and delivered a savage bite to her arm. Sarph immediately rose and soared over the two Oracion Och wizards, hovering over Erza as she crumbled to the ground. Natsu picked himself up, and the two men faced off, angry, against Racer and Cobra.

A tall, imposing figure loomed out of nowhere in front of Tyria, and the technology wizard gasped, staring down Canceler.

A firm look crossed Grace's visage, and she inhaled, hissing, "Tyria! Duck!"

Perhaps it was memories of some of the insane things that Tyria had seen Grace do, but the Electrian immediately decided it was in her best interest to obey, flattening herself to the ground.

In perfect unison, Grace and Wendy screamed; "Reality Dragon's," "Sky Dragon's," and, exhaling, "ROOOOOOOOAAAAAAAR!" The resulting blast of grey and blue energy tore through the illusion of Canceler like paper, smashing into Angel behind him, and sent the Celestial wizard flying away.

Tyria wheeled and stared in shock as she picked herself up. "You're a Dragon Slayer too?" she gasped.

"Yeah," Wendy nodded. "Sorry, I thought I told you,"

Across the field of battle, Brain's eyes widened, fixing on the two girls. "Racer!" he barked. "Bring me those two!"

Wordlessly, the blond Speed wizard disengaged from his fisticuffs match against Sarph, and dashed in the girls' direction. Tyria, having heard Brain's shout, readied herself with a "TechType: Tectonics!" but Racer skirted her, snatched up the two girls by the shirts, and sped away. Gray, spotting him, tried to cast a spell to interfere, but a blow from the shadows, courtesy of Canceler, interrupted him, and Racer made it back to Brain.

"Good," The Electrian man smiled coldly, and eyed Mylene, who was on the verge of beating Pierce's head in. Brain then looked at Hoteye, who had just blasted Boomer away and was working to finish off Lyon, Cobra and his snake, who were battling Sarph and Natsu, Angel, where she was preventing Tyria from going to rescue the young Dragon Slayers, and the area where he assumed Canceler was, based on the way Gray was jumping at every shadow. "The rest of you! Return here as well!"

Reluctantly, the five dark wizards abandoned their prey and regrouped with Brain, who raised his staff as the wizards, grateful for the reprieve, but wary of his next move, eyed him in concern.

Dark energy built around the staff, with terrifying moans echoing through the air. "Dark Rondo!" Brain declared, and with a moan that shook everyone present to the core, a chorus of wailing spirits erupted from the staff -

"Iron-Rock Wall!" A massive wall of rock erupted between the Och and the Coalition, safeguarding the assembled wizards. Natsu, Gray, Sarph and Tyria, the only members of the group still standing, turned to see Jura, shadowed by Artorias, rushing towards them. "And where were you two?" Natsu irritably demanded.

"Get everyone awake. We need to regroup," Jura commanded, and Sarph nodded. "I'll go find Boomer and the Trimens," he declared, shooting into the air.

Tyria helped Pierce up, who moaned, clutching his head. Natsu looked over. "You okay?" he called to the Phoenix, who weakly nodded. "Grace," he frowned, looking around. "Where is she?"

"They took her," Pierce looked over to see Gray fuming, though he looked more angry with himself than anything. "They took her, and I couldn't stop them,"

An agonised moan interrupted, and the wizards looked over to see Erza sitting up and gritting her teeth in agony. Pierce immediately rushed over, and spotted a wound that had rapidly turned a sickly purple. "Hey, that's where that snake bit her," Natsu recognised, frowning.

Pierce immediately crouched over the wound, but flinched back as the Heaven's Wheel Requip faded, putting Erza's normal armour back on. "Help me get this off," he commanded the Salamander, pushing away thoughts of Grace and focusing on the task at hand.

Within minutes, Erza's arm was bare, allowing Pierce to properly inspect the wound. "Yeouch, this is bad," the Tamer winced.

"What's the problem?" Ezra asked, through gritted teeth. "Poison?"

"Venom, technically," Artorias crouched nearby, joining Pierce. "How's her blood?" the Tamer immediately asked, and Artorias concentrated. "The venom's following her blood flow. It's running down her arm right now, but soon it'll start going back up, back towards her heart. And if the venom reaches her heart, she's done for,"

"How long?" Erza moaned, and Artorias shook his head. "No more than half an hour until it kills her, I'd say. But I can use my blood magic to slow it down,"

"Well?" Natsu challenged, crouching down and glaring at Pierce. "Can you make a cure?"

Behind them, Jura and Tyria started to rouse the unconscious wizards.

"I don't know," Pierce frowned. "I have an antidote for bee stings, but I've never needed a cure for snake bites before," He paused, thinking. "I might be able to distill a cure, but I'd need a sample of venom from the the same snake,"

"Well, why didn't you say so?" the Dragon Slayer demanded. "I'll just go beat up that snake guy, steal his snake and drag it back here!" he declared, standing up and turning. "Ok, Happy! Come and give me a lift!"

"Wait!" Everyone turned to see Carla, the little white cat holding up,a paw and interrupting the entire argument. "It would be much easier to rescue Wendy and bring her back here!"

"Happy?" Natsu called, looking around, and frowning. Now that he mentioned it, Pierce noticed that the little blue cat was nowhere to be seen.

"Yes, but Wendy and Grace are being held captive. Erza is on the verge of death," Jura pointed out. "I know it's hard, but she has to take priority,"

"No, you don't get it," Carla shook her head. "Wendy is a Sky Dragon Slayer. She has healing magic. She can cure the poisoning,"

The others looked at Pierce for confirmation, who shrugged. "I'm inclined to be skeptical, but I've seen the things Dragon Slayer magic can do, so I'll buy it," he nodded. "Plus, it would probably be faster than defeating Cobra," he admitted.

By now, Sarph had returned with the Trimens, and the other wizards were all awake again. "Well, we need to figure out where they've taken her," Lyon reasoned, and Sarph nodded in agreement. "We should split up, to cover as much ground as possible,"

"I'll stay here, and use my Archive magic to keep everyone in contact," Hibiki suggested. "If that's alright with you, boss?"

"Of course," Ichiya nodded. "Ren, Eve? With me," he commanded, and the other two Trimens nodded in agreement. "As you command, sir!"

"I'll stay as well. Me and Hibiki can synchronise our Archive for greater range," Sarph suggested.

"Gray? For old time's sake?" Lyon suggested, but Gray shook his head. "No way I'm letting Natsu go off by himself. Especially not with Happy missing,"

"What are you talking about? I ain't gonna be by myself," Natsu retorted. "Oi, Pissy. You're with me!" he commanded, pulling Pierce up by his blue shirt. "What? Why?" the Tamer replied, before frowning. "And you got my name wrong again!"

"You and I did pretty good against Laxus," The Dragon Slayer pointed out. "Whaddya say we give these guys a taste of Round 2?"

Pierce raised his eyebrows, but nodded, swept up in Natsu's infectious enthusiasm. "Alright. As long as you remember that it's 'Pierce',"

"I'm coming with you two," Carla declared, stepping forwards. "If anyone's going to find Wendy, it's you, and I want to be there,"

"Well, you aren't leaving me behind just because you got some other tag-alongs!" Gray snapped as Natsu dragged Carla and Pierce away, running after them.

"You. Emanuel?" Lyon tried, talking to Boomer.

"It's Boomer, actually," the Sound wizard shook his head.

"Right, sorry. Would you like to come with me and Sherry?"

"Sure," Boomer smiled. "Let's go,"

Lucy and Tyria both looked around, finding that everyone had already teamed up. "Uh . . . guess it's the two of us?" Lucy shrugged, looking at Tyria.

"Don't see why not," the Tech wizard shrugged.

"Don't forget me," and the two looked over to see Jura approaching them. "It appears my guildmates have run off without me, so I might as well keep an eye on you two,"

Lucy looked starstruck, but Tyria whistled through her teeth. "Uh, my bike only seats two," she pointed out.

"Bike?"

"TechType: Motorbike!" Tyria invoked her main means of personal transportation, and summoned up her bike. Sure enough, there was only enough room on the seat behind her for one person. Lucy nodded, climbing on. "Sorry!" Tyria apologised as she screeched away.

Jura looked a little miffed, but shrugged. "Alright. I suppose I'm off by myself, then," he decided, turning to leave, but a shout got his attention.

"Wait," Artorias commanded. "Angel has a spirit that can copy individual people," he reminded Jura. "You can't go alone, or that spirit could pretend to be you and use your image to sneak up on our guildmates,"

The Wizard Saint paused, considering this. "You're right, but in a fight like this, a wizard of my strength cannot just remain on the sidelines,"

"Then wait until Grace and Wendy return," Erza suggested through gritted teeth. "Besides, I'm sure we can find a topic of conversation,"

"True," Jura nodded. "So, how is Magnolia?"

~P's E~

"Oh, isn't this delicious?" Brain chuckled, gazing at his two - three captives. "Why is the cat here?" he asked Racer, who shrugged. "He must have snuck on,"

Brain thought for a second, and shrugged. "It doesn't matter. Cobra can feed it to his pet when it gets hungry," Behind him, Cobra rankled a bit at Brain's calling Cubelios an 'it', but said nothing.

He turned back to the two captured Dragon Slayers, both locked in a cage at the back of the cave which the Och were using as a campsite. Wendy was frightened, but Grace . . Grace looked like she had fallen into a waking nightmare.

"It's been a while, Miss Hystia," the man sinisterly smiled. "Do you remember me?"

Grace remained mute, and Wendy, seeing how scared she was, squeezed her wrist reassuringly. "It'll be okay. The others will come and rescue us," she whispered, and Grace softly nodded.

"I will admit, it amuses me that you think you can have a life of your own," Brain's eyebrows slid together. "That you think you can take the results of my efforts, my experiments, and run off with them. But no. You belong to me, Grace Hystia. I own you. And I will make sure you never forget it,"

But, as if a switch had been flipped, he looked away. "But that can wait. Wendy, the Sky Dragon Slayer. Your usefulness is a little more short-lived, however if you're good you'll last longer . . but regardless. I have someone I want you to heal for me,"

"I won't do anything for you!" Wendy snapped, and Brain chuckled. "Oh, I think you will. When you see who it is I want you to heal, anyway,"

He snapped his fingers. "Racer. Go and retrieve the tomb for me,"

"The tomb?" Racer frowned. "That's pretty far away, and pretty heavy. It'll take me at least an hour to get it back here,"

"Fine, just retrieve it, and fast," the Electrian scientist commanded.

"If I may, sir, why do you want this object?" Mylene questioned, tilting her head in curiosity. "Will it help us in our pursuit of Nirvana?"

"Oh, Mylene. You are a recent addition to the guild, so allow me to bring you up to speed," Brain suggested. "The man I speak of is one of the greatest dark mages of this age, a man with skills comparable to mine who was struck down when his experiment was destroyed," he paused for effect, "and a former student of mine. After his project was destroyed, he suffered the fallback, and fell into a coma. However, with our little friend here, we can revive him,"

"I see. I will look forward to meeting him, then," Mylene nodded, and Brain smiled. "Indeed you should. I think you'll like him," he offered. "But, in the meantime, you, Cobra, Hoteye, Canceler, and Angel are to split up and search the Worth Woodsea for Nirvana. I know it's in this area, but I don't know the exact location. So find it!"

"Of course," Mylene nodded, turning to leave. Canceler melted into the shadows, and the other members of the group followed Mylene's lead. Only Cobra remained, watching Grace curiously.

"Cobra? Is there a problem?" Brain asked, and the Poison wizard shrugged. "I'm just curious. This girl, Grace. The abilities you gave her were designed as an evolution of the abilities you gave me, correct?"

"Indeed," Brain nodded, and Cobra shrugged. "I just can't help but wonder if there's any . . particular reason you chose her for the experiment?" he asked, probing his leader.

The Och's leader paused, looking at Grace, before his gaze returned to his guildmate. Cobra followed his gaze, and thought some more as to his theory. Grace had a complexion only slightly paler than him, he noted, and something did look vaguely familiar about her . . .

"No," Brain shook his head. "No reason at all. Now go and find Nirvana,"

"Yes, sir," Cobra nodded, and, carrying Cubelios with him, left the cave.

 _~P's E~_

 _"Welcome to Donkey Kong's Dong-umentaries on Pharaoh's Sigh!" Kit exclaimed with a grin . . . and glared off-camera. "Seriously? This is the best that the author can come up with?"_

 _"I'm the one who signs your cheques!" the response came._

 _"You don't pay me!" Kit retorted._

 _"I'm also the one who determines how much screentime you get," the author evenly retorted, and Kit paled (extremely tricky to do with a face covered in white fur), and hastily corrected himself. "Well, I think your writing is brilliant! Five stars!"_

 _"Get on with it!"_

 _"Today, our topic of discussion is, um," Kit searched through the notes, desperately seeking a topic of conversation. "I know I'm on the verge of getting cancelled . . there has to be something!"_

 _Eventually, he found something. "Ah. Artorias' strength and how it compares, that'll do!" "So, it's been previously established that Bleeding-Vein Artorias (the weeping phoenix who sheds tears of blood as it rains down destruction upon its foes, blah blah blah) is the strongest male wizard in Phoenix's Eye, and is only beaten out for the title of strongest in both genders by Master Feng herself, and the mysterious Faraday. It has also been previously established that the author, who recently changed his pen name as you may have noticed, hates Gary Stus/Mary Sues and does his utmost to make sure none of his characters are OP, or at least, if they are, they have good reasons for it,"_

 _"Arteries is the closest he has come to breaking that rule in years," Kit effortlessly delivered the impactful sentence with a smile._

 _"While Artorias has not had much character development yet (though he will in the near future), his character originated with the stated goal of being a Phoenix's Eye rival to Laxus - though the author stopped comparing his characters to the canon ones ages ago. Phoenix's Eye has it's own identity by now and it doesn't need to compare itself to Fairy Tail, andI'm sure all you readers agree or else you wouldn't have read up to Chapter 25. The point is, it's been previously stated that Artorias was one of the earliest OC submissions made to the author who he was writing the first few chapters of the story, and Fenghuang promptly decided he had the potential to make a great S-Class wizard . . . and maybe overestimated him a little bit. Watching the bloodbenders on Avatar probably had a role in that," Kit unashamedly admitted. \_

 _"Point is, around Chapter 20 Fenguang decided he needed a retroactive reason as to why Arteries was so strong . . . and remembered that canon did the same thing with Erza; introducing the idea of the Second Origin and stating that her strength comes from a freak genetic blip that grants her natural access to her Second Origin. Therefore, it is officially canon that Artorias, like Erza, has natural access to his Second Origin. So chew on that, readers. See you next time!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **In regards to the obvious theory introduced at the beginning of this chapter; is Grace Cobra's sister? . . . I'm giving it a definite 'maybe', because I honestly haven't decided myself. Cobra will definitely reappear later in the story (as in, post-Oracion Och arc) so there will probably be a couple of opportunities for them to meet under better circumstances. (Hell, I'm giving thought to finding an excuse for him to join Phoenix's Eye later in the story.) However . . . the real question is; would Grace benefit as a character from the theoretical discovery that Cobra is her brother? If I decide the answer is 'yes', then so it will be. But if the answer is no, then Brain picked a random girl from a village destroyed by dark wizards and that's it. Of course, I am completely open to viewer feedback, so if you, the reader, have an opinion one way or the other, go ahead and tell me! Peas!**

 **What do you mean I have to say the actual word? I'm the author, if I wanted I could end the chapter by saying 'Chocolate-frosted doughnuts with sprinkles' and -**


	26. The Dark Mage Unchained

Chapter 26: The Dark Mage Unchained

 **Well, would you look at that? It worked! Hah! Take that, Ankhseram, I am true god of this world!**  
 **And because that is the case, I have decided that, in order to celebrate cracking 100,000 words, it would be just fine if I posted two chapters in one week! And that I would be willing to do so again if I reach other important milestones . . . say . . fifty reviews? ;)**

 **A/N**

A/N

Tyria's bike skidded to a halt, and she looked around. She and Lucy had stopped on the edge of a cliff, hoping that the high vantage point would give them a good view of the area. "Okay, I'm not seeing anything," Lucy commented.

"Me neither," Tyria shrugged. "Guess we should head down,"

"Not so fast!" Suddenly, several levitating dark wizards shot up from beneath the cliff. "You snatched our MO, so we're gonna smash you!"

"What?" Lucy gasped, and Tyria groaned, recognising them. "Not these guys again,"

"That's right!" their leader shouted, moving forwards. "I, Dennis, Guild Master of Plagued Vulture, will destroy you in retribution for stealing our airship!"

"TechType: Tectonics," the tech wizard shrugged dispassionately, and, with a single hit, punched the man out of mid-air. He fell down the cliff, screaming all the way.

Lucy, seeing how weak their opponents were, grinned. "Open, Gate of the Archer! Sagittarius!" Her horse spirit appeared, and, as they set about beating up the flying wizards, Lucy remarked; "Do you think the others are dealing with grunts too?"

~P's E~

"Hey, look! It's that Eregor guy! Hi, Eregor!" Natsu grinned, spotting the Wind dark wizard, backed up by his guildmates, confronting him and his allies.

"Oh no. They vastly outnumber us - we should retreat," Carla gulped, stepping back.

"You kidding? This is gonna be fun," Gray grinned. "Besides, we beat those guys already, they're just asking for Round 2!"

"Friends of yours?" Pierce asked, raising his flute.

"I beat him up a few months back," Natsu shrugged.

"And yet you remember his name, but not mine," the blond wizard irritably commented.

"And I have spent the time since doing nothing but training so that I can defeat you in our rematch!" Eregor shouted. "Charge!"

Natsu huffed. "Well, if that's all you've been doing," With a flaming punch, he sent Eregor flying away. "Then you haven't grown at all!"

Pierce and Carla hung back, and the cat watched in shock. "You've never seen Magnolian wizards in action, have you?" Pierce sympathetically asked, and Carla shook her head, awed.

"You'll get used to it," the Tamer shrugged, before grinning. "And I can't let them have all the fun,"

~P's E~

"You call this an attack?" Jura huffed as he repelled several dark wizards from Naked Mummy encroaching on the campsite.

"Don't feel too miffed. They are grunts," Sarph reminded him after dispatching a couple with his sword.

~P's E~

"That wasn't so hard," Ren shrugged as the blizzard he and Eve had summoned to dispatch their foes from Dark Unicorn dissipated, and Eve nodded. "True . . hey. Where'd Master go?"

~P's E~

"You all should be aware that I am going easy on you," Ichiya declared, balling his fists. "And when I defeat you, I will be merciful and allow you to escape,"

The man was tied by his ankles and wrists to a stick and being carried by dark wizards through the forest. "So I would very much appreciate it if you could show me the same courtesy!"

"Doesn't he ever shut up?" one of his captors remarked, exhausted already.

~P's E~

Racer sped back into the cave, carrying with him a massive wooden box. "I got it," he wheezed, dropping the box against the wall.

"Excellent," Brain smiled, stepping towards the casket and, with a quick spell, breaking it open.

"This is the man I want you to revive," he declared, making sure that the casket was within Wendy's line of view. The Sky Dragon Slayer gasped, for, suspended within the casket, was a lanky, blue-haired young man with a red tattoo under his eye, and several blue marks on his body. "Jellal Fernandes,"

Happy, who had remained silent, gasped. "Not that guy!"

Wendy, though, looked like she'd seen a ghost. "It's him," she whispered, her breath short.

"Well? Are you going to repay Jellal for help he gave you as a child? Or will you let him languish in this half-dead coma?"

There was a sudden noise, and Brain frowned, looking up. "Racer. Go and investigate," he commanded. "I don't want to be disturbed," Racer nodded and sped out of the cave.

~P's E~

"Okay. It smells like they went this way," Natsu commented, leading onwards.

"Who needs Knox when you have this guy, eh?" Pierce commented, before realising that the others didn't know his beasts.

"You're all absolutely insane," Carla shook her head.

The four wizards stopped short, on the edge of a cliff, which overlooked the ancient-looking remnants of a village. "They're here, I'm sure," Natsu declared.

"Any way to prove it?" the cat irritably demanded.

Racer suddenly emerged from the cave, ran straight up the wall, and sped towards them.

"You three go! I'll hold him off!" Gray declared, ice magic building in his palms. Pierce didn't need any more confirmation, and jumped straight off the cliff. Carla snatched up Natsu by the scarf and carried him in pursuit.

Gray, seeing the area was clear, immediately froze the ground around him. Racer, not prepared for this, lost his balance, fell over, and slid past the Ice wizard in a mess.

At the bottom of the cliff, Pierce, who had jumped greater distances from Raya's back on several occasions and was well versed in safe landings, was already running towards the cave - but a sudden flash of light from the entrance warned him that there was something serious going on inside. For a moment, Pierce faltered, but then he remembered Grace and powered on, playing a tune on his flute as he went.

~P's E~

Inside the cave, Jellal slowly came to. His head was foggy . . he didn't remember anything . . . where was he?

"I'm sorry . . . but I had to," Wendy whimpered, and he glanced at her in confusion, before another voice spoke.

"Good morning, Jellal. Enjoy your nap?" Brain smiled coolly.

Before he could respond, two sets of footsteps interrupted him, and Jellal turned to see a blonde boy in a blue shirt and brown trousers wielding a flute, backed up by a mermaid wielding a pair of stone daggers.

Pierce paused, looking at Jellal. "Who're you?" before spotting Wendy, Grace and Happy in their cage.

Brain eyed him and tched. "Legal wizards. Would you like to take care of him, or shall I?"

Jellal finally looked at Brain, and felt a sensation he couldn't quite identify. Either way, he got the feeling that whoever he was, he didn't like this man. And as for the blond boy and the mermaid with him, they were between him and the cave entrance.

In a blur of motion, he delivered a staggering blow to Brain, sending him sprawling backwards, before shoving Pierce and Crystal aside and speeding out towards the light, narrowly avoiding running into Natsu and Carla in the process.

Pierce filed the event away to consider later, rushing over to the cage and breaking it open. Crystal hovered over the downed Brain, holding a dagger to his threat, and the two Dragon Slayers emerged from the cage. Grace hovered close to Pierce, watching Brain as though he were a sleeping bear, and, crouching, Pierce wrapped his arms around her. "It's okay, it's okay," he muttered, putting his beast taming skills to good use to reassure the frightened young dragon.

Natsu entered the cave, and looked around. "Alright! We beat that Brain guy!" he grinned.

"No, he's just stunned, but he'll recover," Pierce shook his head. "We need to get out of here before then,"

"Why? He's vulnerable!" Natsu protested, but Carla shook her head. "No. Getting Wendy back to Erza has to take priority. We can deal with him later," Natsu was about to protest, but Happy grabbed his scarf and lifted him up. "Whatever the lady says," he nodded, and the two Exceeds flew their partners out of the cave. Pierce was about to follow, but he saw that Grace was still looking at Brain. He took her wrist and pulled her away. "Come on, let's go. We'll head back to the campsite, rendezvous with Sarph and Artorias,"

Little did he know that, even while mostly unconscious, Brain's telepathy magic had activated and his voice was ringing at the back of Grace's mind; "I'm not done with you,"

~P's E~

"Am I the only one who feels that we're moving too slowly?" Lyon questioned.

Sherry shrugged. "I dunno. It's kind of nice, just walking through the woods. You know what it's like?" She tilted her head and clasped her hands together. "Love~"

"Right," Boomer nodded, trying to refrain from rolling his eyes. "Still, if it's speed we need, I think I can do something about that,"

"Really? I thought you used Sound Magic? As in, a kind of magic that mostly relies on the user staying still?" Lyon asked, and Boomer chuckled. "Maybe for most people. But I practice a pretty unusual variety," He pulled up his jacket sleeve, revealing a comically oversized wristwatch, and pressed a hidden button on its side. "Now, we wait,"

"For what?" Sherry asked, and Boomer winked in a conspiratorial manner. "You'll see,"

~P's E~

In the hold of the Garuda, the Sonic Boom's lights flared to life. It's warp drive activated, and, with a flash, it vanished, reappearing outside the ship. It's metal wheels span madly, and the autopilot activated, guiding it to its owner.

~P's E~

From the shadows, Canceler watched. He watched the Sonic Boom moving towards its owner, he watched Artorias guarding Erza, he watched the Dragon Slayers and company escaping the hideout (should he do something about that? Hmm, no) he watched Tyria and Lucy as they were about to run into Mylene - oh? This could be interesting. Within a few seconds he had slunk through the shadows to a nearby town, where the local cinema suddenly found itself missing a box of popcorn.

Canceler settled down where he had a good vantage opportunity of the carnage that was about to ensue.

~P's E~

Mylene strolled through the forest, maintaining perfect posture with every step. "Nirvana has to be around here somewhere," she muttered, looking around as though she might discover it peeking out from a bush.

A high-pitched, metallic whine reached her ears, and her frown deepened. "That's not one of the Och," she muttered, before dashing behind a tree and watching as Tyria and Lucy, riding her motorbike, smashed through the trees. They didn't see Mylene, and something rankled with the Vestal about that.

Mylene cast a dirty glare in their direction. "How can they just ignore me like that? I'll show those little brats how we Vexos do it," she huffed, immediately setting off in pursuit.

However, given that she was on foot, running after a motorbike, she didn't get far. And Tyria and Lucy remained oblivious to her presence.

Her frown deepened again, and Mylene pressed a finger to the activation button on her gauntlet. "Gauntlet; Power Strike!" she commanded, and the blue/black device flared to life. Around her, six hovering energy cannons materialised, and Mylene smiled as two of them locked together in front of her to form a makeshift hoverboard at her mental command. She darkly smiled, jumping on board, and, with the other four cannons hovering behind her, took off.

The first Tyria and Lucy knew of their assailant was when a blue laser narrowly missed blowing their heads off. Lucy's eyes went wide. "What was that?!"

"TechType: Helmet!" Tyria commanded, manifesting her faceplate and, in a nanosecond, synced her bike and helmet together, enabling the rear-view mode, which popped up in her vision. She immediately spotted Mylene chasing them, and Lucy, who could simply turn around, gained the same information. "Hey, look, it's the old lady," Tyria commented with a smile beneath her mask.

Mylene blanched. "What did you just call me?"

"You wouldn't happen to have a high-speed spirit who can carry you, would you?" Tyria asked, and Lucy shook her head. "Damnit,"

"Doesn't mean I'm helpless, though," Lucy protested, before another laser shot inches away from her. "But whatever you're planning, do it fast!"

"Tuck and roll," the tech wizard snapped, leaning the motorbike sideways to dodge another blast of energy.

Lucy was about to question the meaning of this, but suddenly, the motorbike vanished. She screamed, instinctively tucking her head and folding her legs in order to shield herself from the impact.

With a whispered command; "TechType: Jetpack," metal struts bearing giant fans erupted from Tyria's back, and she took to the air without losing a drop of momentum. Banking, the Electrian wizard commanded; "TechType: Machine Gun!" and launched a blizzard of metal bullets in Mylene's general direction.

The Vestal's hoverboard swooped upwards to shield her as the third of her psychic cannons slotted in to catch her, and the assembly dropped to the ground, allowing her to land unharmed and still shielded by the two cannons. Tyria continued to fire for a moment, but realised it was useless, and deactivated the weapon.

By now, Lucy had recovered, and produced a golden key from her pouch. It spun in mid-air, before landing in her palm, which she held in mid-air and turned. "Open, Gate of the Golden Bull! Taurus!" With a doorbell, the bovine Celestial Spirit appeared, brandishing his giant axe menacingly.

The minotaur stared at Mylene in dismayed confusion. "Mooooooooo!" he lamented, eyes brimming with tears as he pointed at Mylene's armoured chest. "Why don't you have any booooooooooobs?!" Taurus demanded.

The Vestal, who had stepped out from behind her shield and was readying an attack, paused and glared at him. "Why would you summon such a vulgar spirit?" she demanded of Lucy. "And if you must know, I do have breasts. They're just covered by my ceremonial dress armour. Fiore might be a cesspit of provocative dresses, but in Vestal, we keep our dignity!" She tched. "It's like dealing with Shadow Prove all over again," Mylene hissed to herself.

Tyria, still hovering above, carefully watched their enemy, awaiting her next move. Deciding that the helmet was a waste of magic, she shut it off, revealing her face again.

"Actually, strike that," Mylene's arrogant smile returned, "it's not like dealing with Shadow Prove, because I have free reign to kill the two of you! And if you want to play with toys, then I suppose I can oblige," she declared, shouting in Lucy's direction, before producing a card from her pocket and dropping it to the ground. "Gate Card, Set!"

A massive shockwave of blue energy emitted along the ground. It didn't affect Tyria, but Lucy and Taurus had to carefully jump to make sure it didn't touch them. However, the wave was so flat that it didn't even touch them.

"That was kind of weak," Lucy observed. "She's planning something, I'm sure," Tyria replied, looking around warily.

Then it hit her, exactly what had happened. "Lucy, look around," the tech wizard commanded in a horrified whisper.

"What is it?" the Celestial wizard asked, scanning the forest. At first, she didn't see anything wrong, but then she noticed what Tyria had. Several metres away, at the edge of the clearing they were fighting in, a bird was flying. Or had been. The poor creature was frozen in mid-air, mid-flight. Leaves falling from the trees had paused in midair, and around them, the noises of the forest had gone dead. Lucy's eyes widened in shock. "Oh . . . oh my gosh, did she just -"

"Indeed. Setting a Gate Card, a creation born of Vestroian magic and Vestal science, has the effect of temporarily stopping time for all but the participants of a battle," Mylene explained. "But that's the least of your worries," she smirked, producing a small sphere from her pocket, which she threw at the ground in front of her. "Rise, Macubass!" The dark wizard commanded, and, from the ball, a massive vortex of blue energy erupted, which cleared after a moment to reveal a glittering, mechanical beast.

Tyria and Lucy gasped.

Macubass was reminiscent of a very squashed knight; a humanoid upper body made of silver metal and black rubber tubing, with blue highlights. Its blue upper body was leant forwards, like a bird, with silver wings extending from its sides, underneath which hung matching arms. Its head was sleek and triangular, with a flat red visor for a face. The mechanical monster mouthlessly roared with a noise like tortured metal.

"W-what the hell is that thing?" Lucy gasped.

"Whatever it is, it's at least partially of Electrian make," Tyria recognised parts of the design - that, and no other nation on Earth Land was capable of such a creation. Vestal technology was impressive, but it didn't hold a candle to the Electrian variety - however, both nations were far ahead of Fiore.

"The pinnacle of Vestal science. An artificially created Mechanical Bakugan," Mylene smirked. Her four cannons swept in and docked on top of Macubass' wigs, charging at attack. "The Gate Card disallows escape; time will only start again once there is a victor. Your lives are forfeit,"

"What's a 'Bakugan' - whoah!" Tyria gasped as a blast of energy narrowly missed her, and she swooped down to where Lucy was. "TechType: Force Field!" she commanded, materialising a blue shield around herself and Lucy.

"I think I read about that once," Lucy nodded. "Oh - right! Bakugan are a race of intelligent, if primitive, beings with powerful magic native to Vestroia, a continent directly south of Vestal," she recalled, before squeaking as a laser passed between Taurus' legs, only to be absorbed by the force field.

"Don't worry, we're safe here for a while," Tyria reassured her. Behind her, Taurus danced around various lasers, trying to find an opening to attack the machine.

"Alright," Lucy nodded. "From what I heard, Vestal tried to conquer Vestroia a few years ago, headed by a group of bad guys called the Vexos, but they were beaten back by the native Bakugan and some human wizards who helped them,"

Tyria considered this and paused. "Uh, didn't Hibiki say that Mylene was a member of the Vexos before they were disbanded?"

"True!" Suddenly, Mylene was just outside the force field, armed with a blue blade of energy protruding from her Gauntlet. She reared back, about to strike, but Tyria frantically deactivated the field and ducked away. The two girls separated, and Lucy produced a small handle. She waved it in mid-air, and a crackling whip of blue energy emerged.

"Good idea. We'll tie her up!" Tyria agreed, commanding, "TechType: Charge Whip!" Her right forearm morphed into a silver weapon, which she raised and fired. A crackling beam of blue energy raced towards Mylene, only to be deflected by the Vexo's blade.

Behind them, Taurus was clearly losing to Macubass, and, with a blast of energy, the machine knocked his axe out of his hand. "Lucy!" Tyria shouted. "You take Macubass, I'll handle Mylene!"

Behind Mylene, Lucy nodded and dashed away, heading for the other fight.

"You think you can defeat me alone?" Mylene tched, raising her sword. "My powers aren't limited to just summoning Bakugan,"

"Oh yeah? TechType: Tectonics!" Tyria declared, negating her Charge Whip and morphing both of her arms into powerful metal clubs.

The Och member slashed at the air with her sword, and a glowing blue wave of energy issued from it. Tyria braced herself, holding her arms up - and was surprised when the attack didn't harm her, but shut her down, forcing her mechanised hands back into flesh and blood. "What?"

"I am a master of Wave magic. My negation abilities are top-notch!" Mylene declared.

"Big deal. TechType: Tectonics!" Tyria declared, but, aside from several blue sparks playing around her hands, nothing happened. "What?"

"My Waves don't just stop your spells, they prevent you from using them," Mylene explained, continuing to advance, and the technology wizard retreated, keeping her distance. "Face it, it's hopeless,"

"TechType: Machine Gun!" Tyria tried, blasting a round of ammunition in Mylene's direction, but the Vestal waved her sword, blocking the bullets, and all shattered into magical dust upon contact with the Wave magic blade.

"TechType: Forcefield!" Her left arm morphed and generated a spherical shield of blue energy around her. Mylene tched and slashed another arc of Wave energy at her, but it fizzled out of existence against the force field. "Sorry, but my Forcefield blocks all projectiles, and it's not a spell. The spell is the generator, which you can't touch because it's behind the Forcefield," Tyria explained.

"You say it blocks projectiles?" In a flash, Mylene rushed forwards, stabbing through the field and forcing her sword into Tyria's transformed left arm. With a flash, the change reverted, and Tyria ducked away, her right arm clutching at the gash in her left.

"Face it, you can't defeat me with your spells," Mylene harrumphed. "Just give up already,"

"Not while I still have an arsenal!" Tyria shrieked. "Gear Change! Mark: Second!" A coroner of power manifested around her body, and her blue hair turned silver, pulling out of its ponytail and into several spikes, as her eyes lit up electric blue. "TechType Mark II: Forty-Eight Peg Gear Blitzkrieg!" The two massive gears of her attack manifested on her forearms, and began to spin wildly. She drove them into the ground, and they sent her shooting forwards, ramming into Mylene with the steel weapons. A mighty kick knocked her into the air, and Tyria drove her arms up, forcing the metal gears to bite into Mylene's coat.

Mylene gasped in surprise at the ferocity of the attack, but, as she was knocked into the air, and her blade flailed, she regained control and slashed wildly at Tyria with her Wave blade. The enchanted weapon cut through her gears like butter, and, with a sharp intake, the attack was cut off, Tyria stumbling back. Mylene landed on one knee, several gashes torn in her armour. "Pathetic," she snorted. "Was that your ultimate attack?"

"Maybe once, but now I'm better," Tyria grinned, in spite of her injuries and the blood still dripping from her left arm. "TechType Mark II: Electrostatic Blade Dance!" Her feet morphed into bladed, silver rollerblades with blue wheels, and her forearms grew silver gauntlets as two razor-sharp spears appeared on each. Immediately, one detached from her left arm and she planted it in the ground, before dashing towards Mylene.

The Vestal readied her sword and prepared to slash - but Tyria ducked and slid past without touching her, planting another spear. As Mylene turned, Tyria continued to skate and stayed in her blind spot, planting the third spear so that it formed a right angle with the other two.

"What are you doing?" Mylene demanded, advancing towards Tyria, only for the wizard to jump straight over her in a stunning feat of agility and, as she landed, plant the last of the spears in position. "Light it up!" she commanded, clenching her fists and pressing her fingers to the button on the gauntlet of her left hand.

The four pillars flared to life, and created a field of electricity with Mylene in the centre. The Vestal screamed, and Tyria smiled a tired smile, watching her enemy sink to her knees.

A blue blade flashed, and one of the pillars collapsed, severed at the shaft. With this opening, Mylene struggled out of the electrical field, and, freed from the pulse, stood up, and glared daggers at Tyria. "Is that it? Because it's not enough!" she declared, brandishing her weapon.

Tyria gritted her teeth. Fine. She'd finished her new spell only that morning, and hadn't even tested it yet . . but if her Mark II spells weren't working, there was nothing else for it.

"Come on. Give up now and I'll make your death fast," Mylene hissed.

In response, the Electrian balled her fists, breathed in deep, and planted her feet in the ground, bracing herself for the strain that the new mode would surely put on her system. "Gear Change!" she declared.

"What, again? How many gears do you have?" Mylene groaned.

"Mark: Third!" Tyria declared, and a circle of white magic power erupted from the ground around her feet, growing teeth and rotating to form the shape of a ticking gear. White energy scorched a black pattern of gear-like tattoos down her arms and legs, as her tracksuit pants split open at the seams, leaving her clad only in her sleeveless blue vest and grey boxer shorts. Her glowing blue irises lit up further, the sclera shining white and glowing like spotlights, as electricity cracked through the silver spikes of her hair as though they were lightning rods.

The discharge of power alerted Lucy's magical senses, as well as temporarily putting Macubass on the fritz. The blonde turned to see Tyria's transformation, and gasped. "Oh wow,"

Mylene snorted. "It doesn't matter how much magic you have, my Wave will shut it down!"

"TechType Mark III!" Tyria shouted as several concentric, interlocking gears manifested on her back, forming appendages in a shape similar to butterfly wings. She levitated, the raw magic power lifting her off the ground, aided by the energy emanating from her transformation. In each of the gears of her wings, blue energy mounted in the centre, each preparing a blast. "Sixty-Four Pulse Kinetic Air Raid!" Every single one of the score of gears of different sizes blasted a concentrated, intense beam of blue energy directly at Mylene, an impenetrable assault that no amount of Wave magic could negate.

The Vestal frantically blocked, her sword slicing through one or two of the beams, but all the rest penetrated. Her armour, already battered and singed, broke under the strain, letting the energy beams scorch her skin. As the lasers grew in intensity with the attack's climax, Mylene let loose one final scream, before crumpling to the ground like a paper bag.

In the seconds before she fell unconscious, Mylene couldn't help but reflect on how ironic it was that she was defeated by a bunch of teenagers - again. 'My prayer, was that people would respect me as they used to,' she quietly thought to herself, reminiscing about the reputation she had once held amongst her people, before sinking into darkness.

On Lucy's side of the clearing, Macubass, who had already been doing pretty badly - arrows had wedged in its laser cannons, courtesy of Sagittarius, Loke's Regulus Impact had caused one of its eyes to shatter inwards, and Virgo had punched several holes in its wings. But now, with its controller gone, Macubass' entire body glowed blue and shrunk, returning back into a ball. Underfoot, the Gate Card shattered, white fragments of energy erupting from the ground before disintegrating, and, as Lucy looked around, time restarted.

In the shadows, Canceler shook his head to himself. If Mylene hadn't stopped time, he would have stepped in to help - but even he was incapable of breaching a Gate Card's time-stop. To his perspective, one second Mylene had been facing down the two girls with the utmost confidence (and raving about someone named Shadow Prove), and the next one of the girls was floating over her unconscious body with wings made of gears, while the other was standing next to a man in a suit with spiky hair and cat ears, and seemed to be celebrating a victory.

He tutted and sunk back into the shadows. Mylene was so arrogant. It was always her weakness. But he would not fall prey to the same trap.

Back on the field, Tyria landed and her transformation shut down, wings dissipating and hair collapsing and returning to being blue as the gear-like tattoos vanished from her body. She collapsed to hands and knees, breathing heavily.

Lucy was there in an instant. "Are you alright?" she immediately asked, and Tyria nodded. "I'm fine," she breathed. "Just tired," She cast a glance towards the remains of her shredded combat trousers, before her gaze turned to her partially exposed boxers. "Damnit. I guess I still need to calibrate that spell a bit more - I can't end up half-naked every time I get into a fight,"

Lucy suddenly went very quiet, and Tyria looked up, brushing her hair out of her eyes as she did. "Uh, is something the matter?"

"No of course you can't end up half-naked during every fight that would be horrible and embarrassing but what would I know after all it's not like that happens to me where would you get an absolutely crazy idea like that?" Lucy babbled.

"Hey, Lucy?" Loke weighed in with a mischievous smile. "Some of the shrapnel from Macubass' eye shredded the back of your dress. It's probably gonna fall off any second now, but don't worry, I already have a pretty good view of what's underneath,"

"What?" the Celestial Wizard demanded, wheeling on her heel and glaring at Loke and his perverted smile. "Go home!" she snapped.

"But I was only joking!" Loke protested, before vanishing in a flash of golden light.

"Alright, tell me how bad it is," Lucy moaned, turning around and presenting her back.

Tyria winced as she stood up, for reasons completely unrelated to her aching skeleton. "Um," With a sudden flash of inspiration, she dashed over to Mylene's prone form and snatched the silken blue cloak with its black ruffles from around her neck. "How about you wear this until we find you a new dress?" she suggested, offering the only slightly torn garment to Lucy, who groaned. "And Natsu wonders why I always need rent money,"

The Phoenix moaned, clutching her chest, and collapsed to one knee.. Lucy whirled and cast her a concerned look. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Tyria nodded through gritted teeth. "That was the first time I've ever gone Mark III. Takes a bit out of me," She let herself fall to the ground. "Go on without me. I'll be fine. Besides, I should guard the prisoner," she chuckled, gesturing to Mylene.

"Okay, if you're sure," Lucy was unconvinced, but nodded and ran off, resolving to get in contact with Hibiki and ask him to tell one of Tyria's guild mates to come and get her.

 _~P's E~_

"Welcome again to DK's Ds!" Kit declared, rapping in his billboard, which shows a world map of Earth Land. Fiore is in the centre, with Vestal as a continent that was barely one-third of the size to the north-west, and a significantly larger landmass of Vestroia directly south of it and extending further west and south until it reached the corner of the map. To the east, there is a large continent that is shaped similarly to Europe and Africa (however, it is lacking Britain) marked 'Alvarez Empire' that takes up the entire right corner of the board, with an island that resembles a squashed version of Greenland marked 'Electria'.

"Today, we've decided to discuss the ways that the canon of Bakugan: New Vestroia, and by extension the series that preceded it, Bakugan: Battle Brawlers, has been used to augment the Phoenix's Eye canon! Because, in case you didn't work it out around Chapter 24, Mylene Farrow is a character borrowed from New Vestroia. And it might seem boring, but I highly recommend that you read through all of it and keep it in mind anyway; the information is going to be a lot more relevant to the Phoenix's Eye story than it might currently seem. Let's just say that the crossover won't end with Mylene," Kit summarised.

"Bakugan: New Vestroia is roughly split into two halves; the first half consists of the Vexos, led by Prince Hydron and including Mylene, attempting to invade the alternate dimension of New Vestroia by using Vestal technology to change the Bakugan, usually giant monsters, into ball form. This was done because planet Vestal was overcrowded and they desperately needed to expand to new areas to contain the surplus population. However, because while all Bakugan are intelligent, only a select few have the ability to communicate with humans (who were quickly silenced), the majority of the Vestal people at first failed to realise that the Bakugan were intelligent creatures; they thought that they were just dumb beasts. Only Prince Hydron and the Vexos, as well as a select group of rebels called the Bakugan Resistance were aware of the truth, and they intentionally propagated a falsehood that was eventually disproven by the Resistance. In Phoenix's Eye canon, things happened much the same way; all you have to do is substitute 'planet' or 'dimension' with 'continent' and it all reads much the same," Kit explained.

"The second half gets a bit more complicated. In the second part of New Vestroia, the Vexos and Prince Hydron, as well as his father, King Zenoheld, have, after a successful revolution, been forced into hiding. Well, 'hiding' is a misnomer; they actually escaped into space on King Zenoheld's personal space station. Because kings get those," Kit paused thoughtfully. "I wonder if the Yokai King has his own space station? If he does, I hope he lets me borrow it," "Anyway. First, for the sake of vengeance, King Zenoheld launches an experimental doomsday weapon at New Vestroia that would have killed all the Bakugan in New Vestroia, if the same Resistance hadn't subsequently, and a little ironically, launched the doomsday weapon back into space so that it would explode in a place where it couldn't hurt anyone. If only they'd had better aim, they could have hit the space station," Kit chuckled. "Then, King Zenoheld and the remaining Vexos, because at this point two of them, Spectra and Gus, had defected to the resistance, decided they couldn't give up without one last whack at world domination. So King Zenoheld had his chief scientist, Professor Clay, who remained loyal to him throughout all this, use alien technology to change his space station into the Alternative Weapons Platform, an orbital superweapon (comparable to the Death Star from Star Wars) with enough firepower to completely obliterate entire worlds. It was at this point that King Zenoheld planned to hold the entire universe to ransom and use the Alternative to destroy any world that refused to accept him as Supreme Overlord. However, two of the four remaining Vexos, Volt and Lync, decided that this was going too far, so they decided to jump ship. Volt tried to escape into exile, however he was hunted down and killed for betraying King Zenoheld, however Lync took it a step further and attempted to defect to the Resistance, just as Spectra and Gus had before him. He was killed too, but not before he managed to give the Resistance the specs to the Alternative. Using the data Lync sacrificed himself for, the Resistance used their Bakugan and Spectra's own personal spaceship (because obviously he gets one too. Lousy lucky Vestals.) launched a space assault on the Alternative so that they could destroy it before it was completely activated. In spite of the Alternative reaching full power mid-battle, it was successfully destroyed, and King Zenoheld, Prince Hydron and Doctor Clay all died when it exploded. And that's New Vestroia in a nutshell,"

"Now, how did all this translate to Phoenix's Eye canon? With a couple of notable differences. The majority of all this still happened in the same way, with a couple of notes; in the original, Mylene and Shadow Prove both committed suicide rather than be captured by the Resistance. In Phoenix's Eye canon, though, their attempt failed and they were successfully incarcerated . . at least until Mylene broke out and escaped to Fiore to hook up with the Oracion Och. And while Volt was still killed at Hydron's hand, Lync also survived, joining the Resistance for a short while before going to live with retired Battle Brawler Alice and her grandfather,"

"So, that's that! See you later, on Doctor Kit's Documentaries!"

A/N

 **A/N**

 **I hope no one skipped all that, even if they have seen New Vestroia. The importance of that exposition may be miniscule now, but it will grow.**

 **And yeah, Tyria gets Mark III already. I have a reason for rolling out the evolutions of her abilities as quickly as I am, I promise. XD**

 **Peace!**


	27. OT2: A Phoenix

Chapter 27: OT2: A Phoenix (Fall Out Boy)

"So, we're doing another music video thing?" Grace asked, and Boomer nodded. "Master's orders," he shrugged, setting his boombox down at the top of the cliff they, plus Pierce, Tyria, Sarph and Hare were standing on.

"Cool. The last one was fun," Grace giggled as Boomer switched the music on.

 _You are a brick tied to me that's dragging me down_

Pierce jumps off the cliff, clutching his flute with a wild grin.

 _Strike a match and I'll burn you to the ground_

Tyria, with TechType: Jetpack equipped, zooms in front of him.

 _We are the jack-o-lanterns in July_

Boomer falls in from the top of the screen, boombox in hand, and winks.

 _Setting fire to the sky_

Sarph, with his Aera active, swoops in front of Boomer and holds his sword in a combat-ready stance.

 _Here, here comes this rising tide so come on_

Hare jumps in from the lower corner of the screen with a savage leer and a martial arts pose, as she finally lands on the ground at the base of the cliff.

 _Put on your war paint_

Grace emerges from a bent portion of space in front of Hare and beams, fingers splayed and reality rippling around them, as she crouches, posing.

 _Cross walks and crossed hearts and hope to dies_

Jashie and Eishaj stand together, leering down at the camera.

 _Darker clouds with blue lightning_

A storm brews above the ruins of Ghoulia, and high above it, on his altar at the top of the mountain, Regykraeon cackles maniacally.

 _So we can take the world back from a heart attack_

Totomaru, in midair, casts Rainbow Fire, and the screen suddenly changes to a far away-view of the pillar of multicoloured flame summoned by the spell raining down on Magnolia.

 _One maniac at a time we will take it back_

Boomer grins at the camera from inside the Sonic Boom's cockpit, before it zooms out to reveal him being pursued by Regykraeon, cracking with electricity.

 _You know that time crawls on when you're waiting for the song to start_

The entire Coalition stands together in Ichiya's vacation house, all smiling at the camera.

 _So dance alone to the beat of your heart_

The scene cuts to the eight members of the Oracion Och, all standing and glaring at the camera. Brain has a dark smile.

 _Hey, young blood! Doesn't it feel,_

Pierce and Knox combat Regykraeon's animal golem, the two canines engaged in a savage brawl.

 _Like our time is running out?_

Grace rains down a Reality Dragon's Roar on Goliath, who bellows in pain as the rest of Team Pierce stand around, readying attacks.

 _I'm gonna change you, like a remix_

Artorias, wielding a sword recognisable as Sarph's Solamion, and Canceler, using a scythe of his own, dart around, combatting each other with blood and shadow, as well as their blades.

 _Then I'll raise you, like a phoenix_

Tyria, in TechType Mark II, uses the massive gears of her Forty-Eight Peg Blitzkrieg to attack Lorus.

 _Wearing our vintage misery_

The camera hovers above Magnolia, surrounded by the Thunder Palace, which is sparking with electricity.

 _No, I think it looked a little better on me_

The scene changes back to a massive view above the ruins of Ghoulia, with the Garuda docked in the town square.

 _I'm gonna change you, like a remix_

The camera swoops downwards, swerving around the Garuda's canopy and showing the entire deck.

 _Then I'll raise you, like a phoenix!_

On the deck, Team Pierce is standing, With Pierce in the centre, flanked by Boomer and Grace, and with Kit on his shoulder. Hare and Tyria are standing behind him, with Sarph at the back, towering over everyone. All are smiling, even Hare has a small smirk.

Hare unfroze from the pose and her signature disdainful expression reasserted itself. "So, when are we doing one solely focused on me?" she demanded in Pierce and Boomer's general direction.

"On your own time," Pierce retorted.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **{counts on fingers} Sorry, Hare, but the absolute earliest you could get your own theme is the fifth one, and that's gonna be, like, Chapter 70 or something. You got a while to wait. XD**

 **Disclaimer: Song lyrics may have been altered to suit thematic values of the story.**

 **Alright, that's the second opening theme! And, for the eagle-eyed, there's a couple of sly little teases to future events; some obvious, some not so much. :P (Also, yes, the showdown between Artorias and Canceler will happen within a couple of chapters. I'm looking forward to it; it'll probably be Phoenix's Eye's highlight of the entire Oracion Och arc - though I think Pierce vs. Cobra just might top it :) ) Peace!**


	28. CT2: Catch-22

Chapter 28: CT2: Catch-22

 _Yeah, I could be getting old, but I'm getting round_

Boomer, carrying his boombox in one hand and ' _The Darkened Book - Regykraeon_ ' in the other, walks down the abandoned main street of Ghoulia.

 _Call it immature, sure, but hear me out_

He looks around, a melancholy expression on his face.

 _'Cause the only thing promised is the here and now_

He stops in front of the church, which has had its spire knocked over, and blocking a nearby road. No doubt a petty act of vandalism by Regykraeon.

 _If we didn't live it up, never live it down, yeah_

He turns around, and sees the Sonic Boom parked behind him. A small smile crosses Boomer's face.

 _And when I jump I hold on, I'm like, "oh my Lord"_

The Sonic Boom speeds through town, Boomer at the wheel. _The Darkened Boom - Regykraeon_ glows in his lap.

 _If it all goes wrong then it's all my fault_

He stops the car at the base of a mountain, and looks up, seeing the corona of electricity and storm clouds that has built up at its peak.

 _Man, some just want to watch your world burn_

Boomer grits his teeth and takes off, driving the Sonic Boom into the mineshaft.

 _But some on the straight and narrow lost first turn, so_

At the top of the mountain, Regykraeon laughs maniacally. Behind him, his two golems bellow in agreement, while Seilah rolls her eyes dispassionately.

 _Before you play, take a page of my own advice_

Regykraeon darts around in the sky, still silently launching.

 _It's all a game, know the price when you roll the dice_

His lackeys all split up, leaping down from the mountaintop.

 _And what's the rush man? Nowhere else to go tonight_

Tyria, riding her Motorbike, drives her TechType: Drill into Golem's chest.

 _And we ain't getting out on time, let alone alive_

Seilah knocks Sarph away, only to get blindsided by Grace's roar.

 _The choice is yours, you're down for the cause_

Pierce and Knox combat the stone animal.

 _Be hated or adored, but never ignored_

Regykraeon turns in surprise as the Sonic Boom emerges from the mineshaft, and Boomer glares at him through the windscreen.

 _And whatever card you draw you can't win them all_

Storm clouds crash with waves of sound, creating a strobe effect that lights up the screen.

 _So leave the sad songs at the door, get involved and -_

The sound overpowers the storm, and, as Boomer grins, Regykraeon is sent flying away into the sky.

 _And stay, stay, stay, another round_

Laxus looms in front of the screen, with the Thunder Legion to his left and Jashie, Eishaj and Lorus to his right.

 _'Cause who wants to live forever?_

Regykraeon, flanked by Seilah and his two golems, with Goliath looming over them, appear next to the rebels, separated by a space.

 _Who wants to burn it down?_

The black-and-white pillar of Nirvana erupts between then, and the Oracion Och appears in the centre, pushing the other two groups away.

 _Down, down, down, down_

The entire screen is consumed by a spreading white flash.

 _And we can paint the town_

Around Magnolia, every single one of the Thunder Palace lacrima explodes at once.

 _'Cause who wants to sing the blues?_

Natsu and Pierce, the latter riding Raya, stand together, facing off against Laxus. In unison, Natsu and Raya breath a stream of fire at Laxus.

 _So some you win or some you lose_

Boomer closes the door behind him as he enters his hut, still holding Regykraeon's book.

 _It's all a catch-22_

He takes one last look at it, before placing it back on his shelf, and turning back towards the door.

 _{shortened version of the musical interlude} It's all a catch-22_

The screen freezes with a shot of Boomer running out through his door, towards the rest of Team Pierce who can be seen in the background, and leaving ' _The Darkened Book - Regykraeon_ ' behind.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **Hoo yeah. Another 'season' finito.**

 **Also, double-posting this week is not to celebrate anything - opening/closing themes usually aren't particularly pertinent to the story (though I am considering adding bonus scenes to them in the future to make them more interesting) so I figure it's bad enough I deprive you of plot progression for one week, and doing it for two would just be cruel. (To say nothing of the fact that even following the current schedule, the backlog has piled up enough that I could maintain the current schedule for five months - in other words, review, fave, follow, give me excuses to double-post again!) Peace!**


	29. Mega-Bass

Chapter 29: Mega-Bass

"Welcome back," Hibiki nodded as Pierce, Natsu, Grace, Wendy, Happy and Carla reemerged into the clearing where Hibiki, Erza, Artorias, Sarph and Jura were waiting.

"It has gotten worse. Erza needs healing magic, now," Artorias said, worry lines creasing his brow.

"Okay, on it," Wendy nodded, rushing over to Erza and splaying her fingers to cast a spell, as a magic circle appeared in her hands.

As Wendy healed, Artorias thankfully sunk back into the grass. "That was . . annoying," he commented, flexing his hands and rubbing his knuckles to alleviate the cramps that had developed.

Pierce, who had been carrying Grace, gently set her down. "Are you alright?" he tenderly asked.

Slowly, Grace nodded. "I'm fine," she breathed.

Jura and Sarph crouched nearby, carefully eyeing the young Dragon Slayer. "She's had a nasty scare, but she will be fine," the Wizard Saint appraised, and Sarph shook his head. "I hate to disagreee with you, sir, but Grace has history with Brain that I don't think you're aware of," He promptly led Jura a few metres away and gave her a quick run-down on Grace's circumstances.

By the time he was finished, the man was dumbfounded. "And your guild master thought it wise to send someone like that on this mission?" he demanded.

"Actually, no. She stowed away," Sarph clarified. "I'm not even surprised," was Jura's only response.

"Doesn't matter. She's here now, so she can help regardless," Both men looked over to see Erza standing up, as she Requipped back into her base armour.

"We can't sit around," Jura declared. "The Oracion Och are out there, searching for Nirvana. We must get there first,"

"Agreed. We'll split up and comb the woods again," Sarph nodded.

"No way. Grace is in no condition to fight," Pierce frowned, but Hibiki rested a hand on his shoulder. "Then she doesn't have to. She can stay here with me and Wendy,"

Pierce was evidently unconvinced, but another hand grasped his wrist. "The kid'll be fine. Besides, you still haven't shown me how much better you've gotten. And there's no better way to work that out than tracking down that snaky bastard and beating him up!" Natsu grinned.

The teenaged Dragon Slayer's enthusiasm was as infectious as always, but Pierce still waited for a nod from Grace before he was willing to go. "Alright," he grinned.

"Come on, Happy! Let's vamoose!" Natsu declared, rushing off and dragging Pierce with him, as Happy cried, "Aye, sir!" and flew after them.

The remaining four S-Class wizards looked at each other and immediately came to a conclusion. "Teams of two," Sarph and Erza said in unison. "You two are guildmates, so you know each other's strengths and will work better together," Erza suggested.

Sarph was inwardly disappointed that he wouldn't get to fight alongside Jura, but refused to show it and nodded. "Agreed. Come on, Arty,"

"It's Artorias," the red-clad Wizard sighed, but nodded and followed.

"That leaves you and I. I suggest we follow in Natsu's example," the Requip mage spoke, and Jura nodded, before Erza's smile betrayed that she meant it rather literally. "Wait,"

A gauntleted hand clamped around his wrist, and Erza dashed off at full speed, dragging Jura behind her. The Wizard Saint quietly decided that this just confirmed his mounting suspicion that all Magnolian wizards were a little bit crazy.

~P's E~

It was around now that Lyon and Sherry were regarding the Sonic Boom with curious dismissiveness. "I am unconvinced that this is an appropriate means of transportation," Lyon skeptically shook his head.

"Indeed. It's all cold and metallic and not emotional in the slightest. It's completely the opposite of," Sherry inhaled, before pressing her palms together and sighing, "Love~ The long and the short of it is, we're better off walking,"

"What's your problem with my car?" Boomer irritably demanded. "I'd like to see you keep up with Racer without the Sonic Boom," he huffed.

"I don't need to keep up with him when I can just slow him down," Lyon shrugged, teal Icemake magic circles appearing in his palms.

"Besides. What are the odds that we end up fighting Racer anyway?" Sherry shrugged.

As if on cue, a red-and-black blur shot through the clearing with the noise of an engine roaring, neatly swerving around the group. "What was that?" Boomer's eyes widened.

Another engine was heard, and Gray, who for some reason was driving a green magic bike, emerged from the bushes, and stopped in front of them. "Lyon, perfect!" he grinned, patting the seat. "Get on. We need to go after Racer, and I can't drive the bike and shoot at him at the same time!"

Lyon nodded. "Very well," he agreed, leaping onto the bike as though the entire argument with Boomer had never happened. "Let's go,"

Gray nodded and was about to drive off, when he paused, taking in the Sonic Boom. "What is that and where did it come from?"

But Boomer just scoffed in response. "That is my car, and I can tell you right now that no Ice wizard is going to be riding in it, and neither are you, miss 'we're better off walking'," he snapped at Sherry, climbing into the driver's seat. In a rare moment of anger ( _no one_ insulted his car) he decided to borrow one of the insults that he had heard a certain Dragon Slayer bandying in Gray's direction. "Hey, icy pricks! Whoever doesn't beat Racer pays for lunch, okay?"

"What?" Lyon blinked, but Gray shrugged at him. "I've dealt with the Phoenixes before. Betting on lunch is a custom of theirs,"

"I see," the older Ice wizard nodded, and shrugged. "Very well. Let's go!" And, with that, Gray's bike sped away into the undergrowth. Boomer rapidly followed, the Sonic Boom smashing the bushes and weaving between - and teleporting through - trees.

Sherry stared after the boys. "Oi! Come back!" she irritably demanded, to no avail. With no other alternative, she began to run after them.

~P's E~

Racer's first sign that he had picked up new opposition was when he heard an unusually lively, fast-paced chorus of bagpipes pursuing him. Confused, he glanced over his shoulder - and narrowly dodged a blast of ice magic. And the next thing he knew, a three-wheeled magicmobile with a coat of electricity crackling over it literally appeared out of nowhere and started tailgating him, and he identified it as the source of the bagpipes.

"Bagpipes? Really?" Gray demanded as he pulled up alongside Boomer. "It's a random-selection system," the pudgy Sound wizard shrugged.

"I'm a little more interested in the fact that his car can teleport," Lyon pointed out.

"Don't be. After all, you're too good for it, remember?" Boomer snipped, accelerating again. The three vehicles emerged from the forest and into an open plain, just as Lyon shouted, "Icemake: Eagle!" A trio of eagles, made of green-tinted ice, shot from his palms and barely missed Racer as he dodged.

"Come on, Lyon. This punk's got it coming!" Gray declared, taking his hands off the magic bike's controls for just long enough to pull his shirt off. Lyon followed suit with a raised eyebrow. "Stay calm, Gray. Don't let him make you angry," he admonished.

Boomer, meanwhile, was still blasting Scottish music at the Och wizard, when he checked on his allies in the rear-view mirror - and his eyes widened. "Why are you two in your underwear?" he demanded.

"Enough!" Racer snapped, making a sharp turn and skidding sideways along the ground, straight into the ice wizards' path. The bikes collided, throwing Gray and Lyon into the air.

Racer stood up as the two fell to the ground in a heap - just in time to see Boomer bearing down on him. "Nope," he growled, leaping out of the way. The Sonic Boom immediately smashed into the magic bikes, its single front wheel lifting the three-wheeler upwards as the still-spinning rear wheels forced it further forwards, until the wrecked bikes were wedged directly underneath the car's chassis. Boomer frantically pressed down on the accelerator and shoved his body weight against the car, but to no avail. The Sonic Boom was stuck.

"Heads up!" The Sound wizard looked up in surprise at Gray's shout, just in time to see Racer bearing down on him through the windscreen. He shoved the door open and ducked out, barely a second before Racer smashed through the glass, shattering it and planting his foot where Boomer's head had been in what would have been a crippling blow.

Racer immediately pulled himself out, and crouched on top of the car. He eyed the three wizards opposing him like a cornered animal. "Red Zone!" he muttered under his breath.

"Any ideas?" Gray asked. "No," Lyon admitted, looking around. Suddenly, he gasped, spotting something in the distance, and smiled to himself.

"Get off my car! I swear, if you've damaged the upholstery, I'll kick your ass twelve ways to Sunday!" Boomer irritably hollered.

"I'd like to see you try," Racer snorted.

"Sure," Boomer grinned, raising his left arm and pressing a few buttons on the controller. "Eat Mega-Bass!" he commanded, and Racer suddenly felt the speakers he was crouched on begin to vibrate. With remarkable foresight, he instantly leapt clear, as a concentrated _missile_ of pure sound erupted from the central speaker, narrowly grazing him. Lyon and Gray's eyes widened as the sound, which was so intense that it was actually visible as a white cone in the air, lanced into the sky at the speed of sound.

"Nice try," Racer mocked, "but I'm too fast,"

"That may be the case," Lyon raised his eyebrows and smiled an almost vampiric smile, "but I think I have a plan," Pulling Gray and Boomer in close, he quickly and quietly explained the details.

Boomer nodded. "Alright, but I'm gonna need my boombox for that. It's still in the Sonic Boom, so you two will have to keep him distracted while I make a run for it,"

"We can manage that," Gray grinned, as he and Lyon adopted positions between Boomer and Racer, making sure the Speed wizard couldn't get at the Phoenix.

"Great!" With that, Boomer made a break for it, rushing towards the stranded Sonic Boom, while Gray and Lyon charged at Racer.

But the blond was too fast for them, skirting around them at incredible speed and making for Boomer, who had climbed back inside the driver's seat and was trying to extricate his boombox, which had gotten stuck. Racer slammed the door shut, before dealing a series of blows to bend it out of position and jam it. "So much for that,"

"Pathetic," Lyon frowned, glaring at Boomer. Racer raised an eyebrow. "Gray, is it just me, or are you equally tired of putting up with inferior wizards like those in Phoenix's Eye cramping our fights?"

"You're right," Gray nodded, glaring at the trapped Boomer. "Guys like that just get in the way. We'd be better off taking Racer down ourselves,"

"I'm so glad you agree. Icemake Pillar!" Lyon commanded, clapping his hands together, and a massive column of green-tinted ice shot up, catching the front of the Sonic Boom and flipping it until the chassis was perpendicular to the ground, and launching it hundreds of metres into the sky. Boomer shouted in protest, banging on the surviving windows in irritation.

"That's cold. I didn't think you legal wizards had it in you to do something like that," Racer commented with what sounded disturbingly like a small measure of respect. "But it just makes my job easier; after all, if three of you couldn't beat me, what chance do two of you have?"

"Oh, you might be surprised," Lyon commented, as he and Gray back-pedalled. "We have to keep our distance and wear him down with ranged attacks," the white-haired Maker mage told his adoptive brother. "Got it," Gray nodded.

"Great idea, just say your plan out loud with your opponent in earshot," Racer snorted, before accelerating and launching an attack. The Ice wizards retreated, continuing to bombard him with ranged attacks, albeit with varying degrees of success. More often than not, Racer broke through their offensive defence and forced them further back, and the brothers continually lost ground.

And so a game of cat and mouse began that lasted several minutes, Racer constantly forcing Gray and Lyon to retreat further and further, pushing them through the woods in a direction where he knew there was a conveniently located cliff.

Before long, the three had emerged from the trees in a small clearing, bordered on one side by forest and the other by a steep drop. In the distance, Gray could see the pillar that Boomer had been trapped at the top of.

"It's over. One more blow and you'll go over the cliff, and no one survives a fall like that," Racer snorted. "Ditching your teammate really was a mistake. Maybe with him you might have stood a chance. But no," he gloated.

"You're sure you've thought this through?" Gray asked Lyon, who, as he spoke, mouthed, 'keep him talking'. "Yes, I have," he smirked.

"Are you certain? Because this gambit of yours doesn't seem to have paid off all that well," Racer commented, a cavalier expression twinkling behind his sunglasses.

"Really? Well, I think you've rather misjudged the situation," Lyon commented. "I guessed the truth of your magic when our vehicles crashed. You aren't using real Speed magic, instead, your magic allows you to alter other people's perception of speed, therefore slowing them down and making you seem fast by comparison,"

"Oh? And how did you guess that?" Racer raised his eyebrows as his smile vanished. His opponents weren't supposed to know that.

"Our first clue was the bikes," Gray took over the explanation. "I noticed you seemed to move faster on foot than you did on two wheels. So why did you take a bike for yourself, instead of just fighting me on foot when I was on one? I figured something was fishy,"

"But the real clincher was the music. Before we left him, Boomer told us that something was wrong with his sound system; all the tracks sounded like they were being played in fast forward. And when I thought about it, I realised he was right, because it's physically impossible to play bagpipes that quickly," Lyon explained. "From there it was a simple conclusion that instead of speeding yourself up, you were simply slowing us down,"

"Yeah, I was. What difference does it make?" Racer challenged, impatiently drumming his fingers against his hip.

"Well, in my studies, I learnt that magic like that has a certain range, and you cannot affect people outside of that range," Lyon finished. "Therefore,"

"The only way to beat you would be to hit you with a heavy attack from outside your range," Gray finished with a victorious smile. "And while we've kept you talking, Boomer has had plenty of time to prepare just such an attack from the sniping position Lyon made for him,"

Metal hummed and fabric coating throbbed as Boomer carefully manipulated the Sonic Boom's systems. In spite of being somewhat upended, he could still manage it well enough to lock the central speaker onto Racer's position and prepare a second shot from his Mega-Bass. "Dodge this," he smirked, pressing the button to fire.

A second missile of pure sound rocketed through the air, sending a massive **_boom_** echoing through the sky as the attack broke the sound barrier, and Boomer grinned. "Thank you, Astro," he quietly thanked the eccentric old inventor, watching the Sonic Boom's ultimate weapon unerringly target Racer's position at the speed of sound. And, because Racer could only affect living beings, he was totally unable to dodge.

Gray and Lyon barely managed to create walls of ice to shield them from the sonic detonation before the attack impacted, sending a concussive shockwave of sound throughout the area, with Racer at ground zero. Leaves were stripped from the branches of trees, animals for miles around ran and hid in fear, and the grass in the clearing was given a perfectly even cut that would make most gardeners jealous.

Racer collapsed, his ears ringing. He clutched at his head in a vain attempt to soothe the agony racing through his skull as his sunglasses shattered from the tectonic noise.

Lyon and Gray dropped the remains of their shields, which had splintered and broken under the impact, and staggered over to Racer, crouched on the ground as he was.

"Looks like our gambit did pay off," the Fairy smirked, but his eyebrows furrowed as Racer didn't respond.

"I think that he might have gone temporarily deaf as a result of the attack," Lyon suggested.

"Yeah, probably," Gray agreed. A thought struck him. "How exactly do you know that you can't blah bagpipes quickly?" he asked in a teasing tone, and Lyon rolled his eyes . . . but looked away to hide a faint blush of embarrassment.

"You think this is it? You think I'm done? That I have no more left to give?" Racer demanded, aware of the other two wizards standing over them in spite of not hearing their words or his own. With a flourish, he tore off the upper half of his bodysuit, revealing a suicide bomber vest underneath that was flashing red. "If I die here, I'm taking you two bastards with me!" he declared, standing up and glaring with bloodshot eyes through the broken rims of his sunglasses at the legal wizards.

"No!" Lyon shouted.

Gray was never definite on what exactly happened next. He saw Lyon grab Racer's explosive harness and pull on it, pulling the wizard towards him, he saw Racer shove at Lyon and send him stumbling towards the edge of the cliff, he saw the two wizards fall out of sight. He never could tell whether Lyon had sacrificed himself to save him or if Racer had thrown himself off the cliff and taken Lyon with him, though he always preferred to think it was the former.

But even as the Maker wizard rushed to the edge, a massive explosion from below pushed him back from the edge. And when the smoke cleared and he could see over the side once again, there was nothing but a swarth of smouldering trees.

The world seemed to go dull as Gray distantly heard footsteps. He turned, mostly expecting Boomer, but the surprise barely even registered when, instead, it was Sherry. "Where's Lyon?" she immediately asked.

He could only dumbly point to the cliff.

"What?" Sherry immediately ran to the cliffside, and saw the destruction below.

"There was a bomb. Racer tried to blow himself up and take us with him, but Lyon took him over the edge to save me," Gray weakly explained.

"What?" Sherry said in an emotionally precarious tone.

It was right about then that a massive pillar of black and white light erupted from the forest below about ten kilometres away.

~P's E~

"What the hell is that?" Natsu gasped as he, Happy and Pierce paused atop a hill to look at the pillar of energy that was the first stage of Nirvana.

"I don't know, but it isn't good," Pierce gulped.

Suddenly, there was a faint buzz in each member of the Alignment's heads, like static, until Hibiki's voice came through. "Everyone! That pillar of light is Nirvana, or at least its first stage!" he explained.

Eve and Ren paused, listening as their fellow Trimen explained. "That pillar is radiating an aura of magic that can affect people's alignments between good and evil. Anyone whose heart is wavering between good and evil will be magically switched to the opposite side,"

"Maybe that explains what's happening to him," Erza frowned. She and Jura had just engaged in battle with Hoteye, who had ambushed them only moments before the magic of Nirvana lit the sky. "Money! Money, money, money, money, MONEY!" he screamed, sinking to his knees and clutching his head.

Suddenly he straightened up and finished, with an affable smile, "Is the root of all evil, which I want no part of! Hoo-ah!"

Jura's jaw dropped. "That's not what you were saying a minute ago!"

"So, if we're less than convinced in our beliefs in the righteousness of what we're doing, any one of us might suddenly turn to the dark side? That's a disturbing thought," Lucy commented. Tyria, having recovered her strength, had taken Mylene to the prison cells at Ichiya's mansion (and decided never to ask why his vacation house had prison cells) before rejoining the Celestial Wizard. "Yeah. Scary," she gulped.

"Indeed," Hibiki nodded, even though no one but the young girls could see him. "Be careful," he commanded, before cutting the connection.

The young Archive wizard looked down at the two young Dragon Slayers, and realised with a start that Grace was clutching her head and squeezing her eyes shut tight. He immediately guessed that Nirvana was affecting her. He immediately crouched down and rested a hand on her head. "It's alright, Grace. Think about your guild, think about your friends," he gently spoke.

Hibiki didn't realise it, but Grace was actually not suffering from the effects of Nirvana, but rather the lingering effect Brain's Magic had had on her mind. That said, his words still had a beneficial effect on her, and she nodded, trying to block out the pain. "Thanks," she breathed.

Meanwhile, Sarph and Artorias had paused, taking in the sight. "Impressive, isn't it?" Sarph offered.

When Artorias failed to respond, the S-Class Archive user cast him a concerned glance. "Arty? Are you feeling alright?"

"Well, that really depends," Artorias' voice, while as soft as usual, was layered with a venomous tone that was usually absent. "How can any of us be 'alright' when we live in such a foul world as this one?"

"Arty?" Sarph looked at his fellow S-Class Phoenix in concern - only to suddenly get clocked in the chin by a blindsided blow. He staggered backwards as Artorias rounded on him. "I've always hated it when you called me that," he spat, glaring at the older wizard with dark eyes. "I hate that you're so petty, that you can't respect me for my strength in spite of my age and resort to feeble name-calling in a vain attempt to maintain a sense of superiority over me," Sarph blinked. "That's not -"

However, Artorias interrupted. "But that doesn't matter anymore. None of it does, because now, I know what I have to do,"

"What are you talking about?" Sarph asked in fear.

"I will cleanse the world of the scourge of humankind, so that never again will anyone feel the pain that I have gone through!" Artorias declared, before his gaze swivelled to the massive pillar of Nirvana on the horizon. "And I think I know exactly how I'm going to do it,"

 _~P's E~_

 _"Yo yo yo, this is the Kit-docster, sliding in to give you cool cats the down-low on Boomer's badass new finishing move!" Kit, who for some reason was wearing red sunglasses and gold chains like a rapper from the sixties - "No no no, home slice, this is eighties get up at the earliest!" - as I was saying, sixties, stood on the stage and gave the viewers a toothy grin._

 _"The Mega-Bass is an incredibly powerful Sound Magic attack, which works by firing a concentrated burst of pure sound at the target at such immense speeds that the sound itself breaks the sound barrier," Kit explained. "Of course, this isn't possible. Sound can't not be faster than itself, right? Nup, it can't. But when Boomer fires his Mega-Bass, it is. Therefore, during the nanoseconds between when Boomer fires the attack and it hits its target, the Mega-Bass becomes a quantum paradox unto itself. This 'ere's is why the attack is so strong, dawgs. It hits its target with the full power of impossibility itself,"_

 _"That said, at present, Boomer can only fire it by using the Sonic Boom as a catalyst. But, when he gets stronger, he'll be able to do it through his boombox, and eventually he'll be able to fire off Mega-Basses with no technological aid at all. Now that's gonna be the shizzle. Oh, and can anyone guess where Feng got the name from? He'll be pleasantly surprised if you can. See ya later on the Kit-docster's down lows, dawgs,"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **I bet none of you saw that coming. XD Plus, I thought it was about time Artorias got some character development.**

 **'But Technow,', you cry. 'Nothing happened to Artorias to make him doubt his commitment to goodness. Why is he suddenly turning evil due to Nirvana?' Well, imaginary collective voice of my readers, think about that for a second.** ** _Nothing_** **happened to affect him, therefore wavering between light and darkness is** ** _normal_** **for Artorias, and Nirvana was all the push he needed to send him over the edge. This'll be elaborated on more next chapter, though, so enough said for now.**

 **Also, the Mega-Bass, which is, at present, anyway, Boomer's ultimate attack. (Though he may get stronger ones in the future, I don't plan that far ahead.)**

 **That's about it; peace!**


	30. The Bleeding Heart

Chapter 30: The Bleeding Heart

Artorias never knew his parents. He grew up in an orphanage, in a small town in southeast Fiore. And for the first seven years of his life, no one had wanted him.

~P's E~

"Hide and seek!" the other four-year old children had cheered, and Artorias eagerly approached them, abnormal golden eyes twinkling in excitement. "Can I play?"

"No, your eyes are weird, and you're smelly too," one of the little girls in the group that seemed to consist of every other child but him, retorted. "On your marks, get set, go!"

~P's E~

"Hey, you? Can you run down the street and get some bread?" the orphanage director asked, and Artorias didn't mind that he'd forgotten his name again. "Sure, sir!"

But when he got to the baker, he was presented with a stern scowl. "Get lost, you little punk. I ain't selling to the likes of you,"

~P's E~

With slightly less vigour, Artorias approached the other five-year-olds as they prepared another game of hide-and-seek. "Can I play?" he asked with the widest smile he could muster.

"Get lost, weirdo," one of the boys retorted.

Artorias slid away.

~P's E~

"Oi, you there. Can you run down and get some bread from the baker?" the orphanage director asked.

"I can't, sir. He won't sell to me," Artorias replied.

The director paused, looking directly at Artorias for the first time in months. After about half a minute, his brow furrowed in recognition. "Oh, right, that's you. Nevermind," With that, he turned around and asked the second-nearest child the same question, Artorias' face already vanishing from his memory, while his name probably never entered it in the first place.

He didn't even register the boy's small sigh.

~P's E~

"Can I play?" he asked of the other six-year-olds, fully expecting another rejection.

One of them opened their mouth, but paused as someone leant over and whispered something into her ear. "Alright, you can play with us," she finally decided as the other finished. Artorias was elated.

Five hours later, the sun was setting. Artorias had spent almost all of that time crouched in the crook of a tree branch, still waiting for someone to find him. The elation was starting to wear off.

~P's E~

At seven years old, Artorias had worked out a way to sneak out of the orphanage without permission . . well, he'd realised that no one particularly cared if they saw him leaving, but 'sneaking out' sounded cooler.

As he wandered down the street, he saw the way that people crossed to the other side of the street when they saw him coming. He saw the way no one wanted to meet the shimmering, golden orbs that were his eyes.

And then he saw him. A man dressed in a black robe, with dull eyes and no hair. People were crossing the road to avoid him, just like they crossed the road for him. Artorias' unnatural eyes brightened. Maybe that man was like him? His stride quickened into a run as he saw the man duck into a side alley.

Artorias peered into the alleyway, and crept forwards, ducking behind a convenient pile of crates, where he saw the man eagerly discussing something with a couple of other people who were dressed and shaven like him.

"Did you get it?" the tallest one, who had thick, curvy, ferocious-looking eyebrows, asked.

The hunchbacked one who he had first seen nodded frantically. "Behold," he declared, drawing a curving, silver tool that was shaped like a question-mark and ended in a bronze handle. "The Weeping Sickle of Firsdruidon Ishiargix,"

His fellows were suitably impressed, and the third, a well-fed fellow with thick jowels and three chins under his mouth, actually jumped for joy. "Ooh! Yes! Now we can do some real dark rites!" he gleefully cried.

"Indeed, Brother," Angry Eyebrows smiled. "You have done well, Brother. But this is no place for celebrations. Come, let us away," With that, Angry Eyebrows strode past Hunchback - who immediately turned and followed - with Three Chins following suit, towards the end of the alleyway.

Artorias' eyes widened. They were coming right for him. And as soon as they passed his hiding spot, they couldn't possibly miss him! He didn't know much about cultists, but he'd done a lot of reading, and anyone who dressed in black and carried around things with names like 'The Weeping Sickle of Thirsty Domed Itchy Gits' was bad news. There was nothing else for it. He turned and ran.

Angry Eyebrows paused for a second, seeing the seven-year-old sprinting down the alleyway and out onto the street. "That boy was spying on us," he realised and frowned deeply, bringing his remarkable eyebrows together. "After him!"

Artorias burst out onto the street and ran in the direction of the orphanage. It didn't occur to him that he would put the rest of the children in danger, it was just the only place he could think of.

So it was probably a bit of a good thing that his seven-year-old legs had no chance of outpacing three grown men. Within minutes Angry Eyebrows was upon him, knocking him to the ground. Hunchback pressed him down with his foot, and Three Chins cackled. "Ooh, little brat. He thought he could get the best of us, but no. No one's getting in our way,"

Around them, pedestrians watched in faint concern, but no one intervened. No one even cared as the cultists knocked the boy unconscious and dragged him away with them.

~P's E~

When Artorias came to, he was in a jail cell, and the three cultists were, along with a couple more, discussing what to do with him. "- can hardly let him go," Hunchback frowned.

"Then what are we to do with him? Kill him? That seems wasteful," Angry Eyebrows questioned.

"Our cousins in the Tower of Heaven could always use more slaves?" one of the unfamiliar ones, who was even taller than Angry Eyebrows and extremely thin, whom Artorias mentally christened Beanpole, suggested.

"No," Angry Eyebrows darkly chuckled, producing the Weeping Sickle of Whats-His-Name. "I have a better idea,"

"Ooh, tell us!" Three Chins eagerly asked.

"Well, wouldn't it be just grand to celebrate our acquisition of this beautiful relic," he fingered the outside edge of the sickle, "with a sacrifice to our beloved god?"

At once, all the cultists grew wide smiles, and Artorias gulped.

"That sounds perfect. An excellent idea, Brother," Beanpole smiled.

"Ooh! How are we gonna kill him?" Three Chins eagerly asked.

"Kill him? Oh, no," Angry Eyebrows shook his head. "We are the priesthood of Ankhseram, the god of death, remember? Wouldn't the best way to pay tribute to him to be to prolong a sacrifice's death? To kill him over a long period of time, months or years, piece by piece?"

All the cultists exchanged glances and smiled. "That sounds perfect," Beanpole summed up the group's decision. "The only question is, is one enough?"

"You're right, Brother," Hunchback agreed. "Well, everyone? Go! Go, and return with more tokens of our devotion!" He turned and peered at Artorias, who recoiled in horror. "And while we wait, let's make a start,"

~P's E~

The next six years or so were a blur. An unending nightmare of torture for torture's sake alone, sometimes with other victims, sometimes by himself. Artorias screamed at first, but all it did was make his throat sore at first, and, slowly, his screams got quieter, until he could barely talk. Even years later, his vocal chords never fully recovered. And the pain just kept coming.

There were other victims, but Artorias didn't talk to them. He was haunted by the memory of his childhood loneliness, and even if he wanted to socialise, all too often the torture-happy cultists went a little overboard and accidentally killed one of their sacrifices. No one lasted long enough to be his friend. So Artorias resigned himself to a lonely, painful death.

Until the day, two years into his captivity, that he first used magic. A session of torture had just been finished with one of his captors, and he had just been thrown back into his solitary cell; one of many in a row, hurting all over. "Make it stop," he mouthed the words but no sound came out. "Stop the pain," And then he felt a tingling. As if by his command, he _sensed_ something rushing through his body, soothing his injuries. A plethora of tiny circles of light appeared over every injury, which rapidly bled, scabbed over, and healed.

"Whoa," he mouthed.

The cultists never noticed. For once, being forgettable and uncared-for was working in Artorias' favour . . even though he still resented it. Because as his mind matured, that was what he developed. Resentment. Towards the cultists, towards the other children, towards the adults, and why? Because of his eyes? He hated them, he hated them all. And now, he had some kind of power. Magic, maybe. All he had to do was get stronger, get better at using it, and then he would make them all pay. This drove him for four years of his life. By day, he suffered through the cultist's sadistic tribute to their god. But by night, while everyone else slept, he practised, training to use his own blood, as well as everyone else's, as a weapon, so that he could get stronger, so that no one could stop him.

But one day, when he was thirteen, things changed again.

The change of his world was heralded by a distant explosion at night. There was shouting, unfamiliar voices. Familiar voices screaming; cultists being killed.

This was his chance.

Using a slick of his own blood, Artorias picked the lock and pushed the cell door open. He looked around. The other prisoners were unresponsive; most were unconscious and the few that weren't had the glassy look that he knew meant they were past caring. But not him. With a silent incantation, he drew away all the blood he could find. Decades of dried blood suddenly liquified and coalesced around him, forming a rippling mass that followed behind him.

The guard was facing away, hardly expecting the broken prisoners to be a threat. He was taken completely by surprise when Artorias tapped him on the back, and spun in surprise. "There's something you should know," His eyes goggled at the sight of the former prisoner, with a maelstrom of blood surrounding him. "I never liked your face," Artorias eloquently informed him, golden eyes glittering with menace, before he punched him with a fist coated in blood. The man was knocked out cold at once, with blood trickling from his broken nose, which Artorias happily added to his collection. "But I think it's growing on me now," he chuckled, and moved on.

Shortly afterwards, he emerged into the main hall of the guild's hideout . . and paused.

Several unfamiliar men, dressed in a variety of strange styles, were everywhere, all beating up cultists left and right. "Come on, boys!" one of them, a snazzy-looking man with a pair of sunglasses and a large hat, shouted as he punched a cultist in the face. "Your soul will always be?" Goldmine challenged, and his guildmates responded in kind. "WILD!"

Artorias, looking down from the balcony he had emerged onto, was enthralled. Never before had he seen people like this, who were fighting together, drawing strength from each other's presence. They were all different, but they didn't seem to mind that. Who were these incredible strangers?

"Oi!" The boy wheeled and saw yet another cultist running towards him. "What are you doing out?"

Suddenly, Artorias remembered his plan. A cruel smile crossed his face as he heaved his mass of weaponised blood out of the corridor. The cultist skidded to a halt in shock. "Bloody hell?"

"Exactly," Artorias informed him with a devilish smile, before launching his assault. Once the man was dispatched, and the blood from his injuries added to his collection, Artorias charged towards the stairwell, hoping to join the unfamiliar men.

Quattro Cerberus, of course, could hardly miss him. "What the hell?" Rocker frowned, watching the teenager fight his way through the army in their direction. "Think he's the boss?"

"Then why is he taking down the other cultists? I think he's on our side," Bacchus replied. "An escaped prisoner? Sounds good to me," Goldmine grinned. "Come on, boys! Let's help him!"

With a cry of "WILD!" the assembled members of Quattro Cerberus smashed through the crowd and forced away the cultists who had been surrounding Artorias. The fledgeling Blood Wizard was shocked to find himself surrounded by excited men who smiled and even laughed as they beat up his tormentors, and he grinned too, caught up in their enthusiasm. "You're doing a good job, kid!" Goldmine grinned at him between blows. "Keep it up!"

Artorias launched a mass of the blood circling around him at a pair of robed men, throwing them into a wall. "Thanks . ." he quietly said, and Goldmine had to strain his ears to catch the quiet voice over the noise of combat. "Who are you people?"

"Us?" Bacchus grinned, taking a swig from a half-full bottle of beer before braining a nearby bald head with it. "We're wizards. From the Quattro Cerberus guild!" he threw off his coat, where it landed in a nearby cultist's face and blinded him, and proudly displayed his guild mark on his back. "And my soul is shaken and stirred," he smirked, throwing himself back into the fray.

"That is so cool," Artorias nodded, and Rocker slapped him on the back. "Naw, kid. It's so WILD!" he bellowed, throwing up an arm and clocking a nearby cultist in the face as he did.

The next couple of hours were the best Artorias had ever had, following in the wake of Quattro Cerberus as they raged through the cultist' hideout and helping however he could.

And, by early morning, the wizards were watching the captives go free, with the cultists locked in the cells in their place. Artorias hovered between Goldmine and Bacchus, trying to match their triumphant smiles. His personal storm of blood had been dispersed, and he was just waiting.

"What about you, kid?" Goldmine suddenly asked. "You got a family to go home to?"

The boy shook his head. "Yeah, didn't think so," the man admitted.

"How do you join a, uh, gilde?" Artorias quietly asked.

Goldmine raised his eyebrows and smiled, having guessed that the boy would strike on this sooner or later. "Well, there's two things you gotta do to get into a wizard's guild," he replied. "First, you gotta be a wizard," Artorias frowned at this, but the man wasn't finished. "And you sure as hell are. I've never seen magic like that stuff you can do with blood, but you got a lot of potential, kid,"

"Oh. Well, what's the second thing?"

"You gotta ask," At this, Artorias' eyes brightened, but Goldmine shook his head. "Don't get too excited, kid. Quattro Cerberus is too wild a place for a kid like you. Maybe when you're older. But I do have an old friend in another guild who I'm sure would be happy to have you,"

And so Artorias was taken to the train station, and told to ride the line until he reached Magnolia. Then, he just had to ask for directions to the town's wizarding guild, and tell the master that Goldmine had sent him to join. So he did, but as soon as he got off the platform, at which he swallowed his discomfort at being around other people and asked a person in an official-looking uniform for directions, he ran into a problem.

"Which one? There's two guilds in Magnolia, Fairy Tail and Phoenix's Eye. Do you know which one you're looking for?" When Artorias answered no, he didn't, the station clerk shrugged and gave him directions to the closer one; Phoenix's Eye. And the rest, as they say, was history.

~P's E~

Four years on, and Artorias had proven to be an absurdly strong wizard, reaching S-Class in record time. But still, he never forgot the horrors of his early life. And no matter how much goodness he saw in his guild, he couldn't forget that humans were capable of causing so much more evil than good.

And now, with Nirvana affecting his mind, Artorias had been given the final push he needed to decide that the world's evil so heavily outweighed its goodness that it would be better for everyone if he tore it all up and started anew.

"Bleeding Slicer," A psychically controlled slick of blood slashed at Sarph, funnelled into a razor-sharp edge. "Get out of my way," Artorias commanded.

"This isn't you, Artorias," Sarph retorted. "Think for a moment. Nirvana's messing with your head,"

"No. It's given me perspective," Artorias corrected him, throwing another Bleeding Slicer at him. It splattered to the ground as Sarph deflected it, the Wave enchantments on the Spell-Shattering Sigil Solamion dispersing the magic. "Humans are a disease, rushing across the earth and destroying it, killing each other all the while. With Nirvana, I'll finally put an end to all of that," he explained, forming a ball of blood in his hands. "Bleeding Wave!" he declared, throwing it to the ground and sending a wave of blood rushing along the ground towards Sarph.

The Archive mage jumped, his Aera wings snapping into existence., and the attack passed beneath him.

"Well? Are you going to hit me back? To try to stop me?" Artorias demanded. "It's what you want, isn't it? It's what you've wanted since I joined the guild,"

Sarph landed, still holding up Solamion in a defensive stance. "No,"

Artorias disdainfully tched. "Fine then," he shrugged, flexing his fingers and cracking his knuckles, before raising his hands up to the Sky. His red/white robe rippled around him as a sudden updraft picked up, and a large magic circle manifested in his hands. "Bleeding Storm!" he invoked, and, above them, stormy, red-tinted clouds issued from his hands, spreading in every direction and blocking out the sun, rendering everything with a red tinge.

Sarph looked up, wary. He couldn't defend against weather.

"Make it rain," Artorias declared, snapping his fingers, and suddenly the clouds unleashed a deluge of bloody raindrops, peppering down on Sarph. The enchanted rain of blood hissed and burnt as it made contact with the man's skin, and Sarph ran for the nearby tree cover. He took shelter beneath the boughs, breathing a sigh of relief. The Bleeding Storm was one of Artorias' most potent spells, but it had a weakness; shelter.

"Bleeding Timber," Artorias commented as he leisurely walked towards Sarph, unbothered by the rain, and the elder S-Class raised his eyebrows in surprise. That wasn't a spell he knew . . .

Suddenly, the tree he was sheltering beneath freaked and collapsed, falling to the ground. He turned in surprise, and saw a tentacle of blood, wielding an equally bloody axe, that had erupted from a puddle of rain-blood and chopped the tree down. "Right, that kind of timber," he realised, and his wings reappeared. Maybe, if he could get above the low-hanging cloud cover Artorias had created, he could go and get help, find someone who could break the magic affecting his guildmate.

As he flew, the rain intensified, soaking his wings' feathers, staining them red, and weighing him down. Sarph flapped harder, determined to break free.

"You won't escape so easily," Artorias quietly commented, as every puddle in the area surged together, forming a massiive wave. "Bleeding Tsunami," he commanded, throwing the mass high into the air, where it washed over Sarph and dragged him down. Sarph gritted his teeth as the wave finally soaked him beyond any ability to fly, before plucking him out of the air and tossing him down to the ground.

With a _thunk_ , the wizard crashed into the ground, gritting his teeth and weathering the impact.

The blood collapsed, spreading across the ground, and Artorias darkly smiled. He was about to advance on Sarph again, enjoying the little game, but he was interrupted, by _applause_.

Whirling on his heel and fully expecting another assault, the Blood Mage already had magic circles spinning in his hands when he registered Canceller advancing on him, with his scythe hung on his back and his hands together. "Well done," the dark wizard commented, his black cloak and raven hair already growing streaked from the rain of blood. "I didn't really think that a legal wizard would have it in them to turn on their ally,"

"What can I say? We have conflicting priorities," Artorias unabashedly shrugged.

"Well, it sounds to me like the two of us, however, don't," Canceller pointed out. Artorias took a second to consider this, and nodded. "True. That's a little ironic, that the Oracion Och's goals now seem to align with mine, isn't it?"

"Well, why not take it a step further?" Cancelled suggested, his silky smooth tones oozing from his tongue like the blood around them. "I'm sure that Master Brain would be remarkably happy to have a powerful wizard like you on the team. Especially since I believe a couple of new positions have opened recently,"

Artorias considered this. "Well . . that sounds fine to me," he finally decided, and Canceller's smile grew, however, a moan from Sarph interrupted them.

"Hold that thought. It seems I have some of yesterday's garbage to deal with," Artorias commented, turning and advancing on Sarph, until he was standing directly over the man and gazing into his eyes. "Well? Are you going to fight back now?"

"No," the S-Class Wizard groaned.

Artorias frowned, a full, deep frown. It was the first time in Sarph's memory that Artorias had displayed emotion that wasn't filtered through his customary veil of mildness and indifference, and he stifled a rueful smile at the thought. "Why not?" the Blood Mage challenged.

"Because guildmates shouldn't attack each other, no matter the reason," Sarph explained through a split lip welling with blood.

Artorias blinked, and for a second his frown wavered, but it quickly reasserted itself. "Didn't you hear? I'm about to jump ship,"

"I don't believe that. You aren't in a good place right now, and I can see that. But you're still Artorias, my fellow S-Class wizard. You're still my guildmate, and you're still my friend. And I would never hurt one of my friends,"

"Shut up," Artorias hissed, turmoil playing across his face. Could it be that he was wrong after all?

"With the fire of our hearts, we will set the night ablaze," Sarph quoted the guild creed effortlessly. "Phoenix's Eye burns its mark onto everything it touches, indeliable marks that can't ever be removed. And I know you, Artorias. You're too strong to let some paltry dark magic wipe that mark off your heart,"

" _Shut up shut up SHUT UP!_ " Artorias screamed. "Bleeding Fist!" A massive blow of congealed blood hammered into Sarph's face, splitting his lip open. The S-Class wizard's hand went slack around the grip of his bloodstained sword.

Artorias panted, screwing his eyes closed tight and pressing on his temples in a vain attempt to relieve the headache that had blossomed behind his eyes. He breathed heavily, feeling magic both his own and foreign come into conflict within his body, with only one possible outcome.

His heart throbbed within his chest, and blood flowed through it.

"Are you done?" Canceller asked, and the Blood Mage quietly responded. "Yes, I do believe I am,"

"Good. Come along then,"

"Actually, there's been a small change of plans," Canceller was taken completely by surprise by the Bleeding Slicer that was fired at him. Luckily, his magic triggered, changing part of his body into shadow, so that the attack passed through him unharmed. As his body reconstituted itself, Canceller span on his heel and faced the Phoenix, gripping his scythe in preparation for combat.

If he didn't know better, Artorias could almost swear that he heard feisty, triumphant music playing in the background. The rain of blood continued to pour down on him and his opponent, but a sudden shaft of light pierced the clouds and cast his gaunt face into sharp relief. "You see, I've come to a realisation," With visible effort, he pried the Spell-Shattering Sigil - Solamion out of Sarph's unconscious hands and lifted it, adopting a two-handed grip and mirroring the other wizard's stance. "There's only one guild I could ever be part of, and it isn't yours,"

Canceller tensed for combat as thunder rippled through the magical clouds above their heads and the rain of blood pouring down redoubled in intensity.

Gracefully, Artorias charged towards him. "I know who I am once more," he declared, bringing Solamion across in a clumsy, but effective strike.

Canceller tched. His body was made entirely of shadow, the weapon would pass through him harmlessly.

But, to his surprise, Solamion bit into flesh, the golden blade gleaming at it drew blood. Canceller recoiled in shock and stared at the blade. "That should not have touched me - how is that possible?"

"You like it?" Artorias chuckled. "This is the Spell-Shattering Sigil Solamion. The Wave enchantments upon this weapon allow it to sever the connection between a wizard and their spell, at which point the spell collapses into the ethernano," He paused. "I don't think I said that quite correctly. Sarph usually has more grandeur," he reflected, before shrugging. "But be that as it may, this sword is capable of cutting through the shadow magic defences on your body in a way that the rest of my magic can't. It's quite possible that I'm holding the only weapon in Fiore capable of killing you,"

"Fine. We will do battle, and I will claim your life," Canceller declared, melting into the ground, suddenly no more than a shadow.

Artorias looked around. "I am the weeping phoenix that sheds tears of blood as it rains down destruction upon its foes," he declared. "I am Bleeding-Vein Artorias, the strongest man in the Phoenix's Eye guild,"

"Even a phoenix of blood cannot fight his own shadow," Canceller's voice declared, before the man suddenly loomed out of Artorias' own shadow - and, without hesitation, Artorias used Solamion to slash the space behind him, dealing another glancing blow. "And even shadows can bleed," he responded.

Temporarily reforming himself in the boughs of a tree, Canceller gave himself a once-over, and noticed that the first blow Artorias had hit him with had opened a gash in his side, one that was dripping blood.

There was a roaring noise, and Canceller frantically melted back into shadow in the second's notice he had before the tree was torn out of its roots by a tsunami of blood.

"That blood is a marker," Artorias spoke, knowing that the Shadow wizard would hear him. "As long as you bleed, I can see you,"

"Really?" The Phoenix heard a voice, but could not pinpoint the source, it seemed to come from every shadow at once. "My weapon has a name too, you should know. It is Gluttony, and it has the power to eat the magic of other wizards,"

"Well, that's interesting. But I don't think you can get close enough to try eating my magic," Artorias pointed out.

"Maybe not," The voice had a source now, and Artorias turned. His eyes widened as he saw Canceller standing over Sarph with his ebony scythe unsheathed. "But who said anything about _your_ magic?" With that, he brought the scythe down, burying it in Sarph's arm, and the blade of the weapon flickered orange-gold. Artorias charged as the blood in the area stirred itself into a frenzy, intent on preventing Sarph from further injury, but by the time any of his attacks hit, Canceller had already vanished into shadow.

And then a golden light flashed in the corner of his vision, and a laser pounded into his back, sending Artorias stumbling forwards.

Canceller stood behind him, his scythe's blade still glowing golden. "Archive magic. I like it," he commented.

"You know, that was a mistake," Artorias quietly commented as he turned, keeping his palms turned away from Canceller so that he could surreptitiously cast a few quick spells without him noticing.

"Sarph never could beat me," he snorted, and Canceler quailed at the massive, pulsating mass of blood hovering in mid-air behind Artorias. He immediately raised his scythe and fired another Archive laser at Artorias, which was absorbed by a tentacle of blood lashing out and blocking it.

Canceller decided to resort to a melee attack, charging forward and swinging his scythe. Sarph's Aera suddenly activated, and a small set of wings appeared around the head of the scythe, lifting Canceller into the air, where he lashed downwards and launched a crippling blow that would have bisected Artorias where he stood - except that the mass of blood got in the way. With a quick spell, Artorias increased his blood's surface tension, and like a giant balloon, Canceller bounced off.

If Artorias had tried that on Sarph, it would have been ineffective. But Canceller had no skills with Aera, and so he was sent flying through the air and landed, hard, on his posterior, right back where he'd started.

"That looked embarrassingly painful," Artorias commented with false sympathy.

"Fine. I was better off with my own magic," Canceller snorted, shaking his scythe and causing it to return to being bland and black. "But I think I'll be even better served with yours," With that, his body rippled, and he made to dive back into the shadows - but something stopped him. "What?"

The Blood Wizard smiled as a perfectly flat floor of congealed blood emerged from the soil right as a gap opened in the clouds directly above him, eliminating every shadow and effectively blocking Canceller from disappearing into the shadows. "I'm so glad you let me distract you for long enough to set that up," he smiled as the Bleeding Storm finally abated above them.

Tentacles of blood lashed out from the mass around him and restrained Canceller's limbs, as Artorias advanced on him, still holding Solamion. "It looks like you're helpless," he commented, raising the sword. "Will you surrender?"

"Never. I'd rather die than surrender to a legal wizard!" Canceller spat, losing his cool for the first time in the fight.

"Alright," Artorias agreeably nodded, raising the sword.

"My prayer," Canceller muttered, seeing the blade glint above him and closing his eyes. "was to see everything so I could never be surprised again," Artorias brought the sword down, and Canceller fell to the ground as the Phoenix released his magic, letting blood trickle into the earth.

A lump on the man's head swelled from where it had been hit with the flat of the sword. Artorias exhaled, hefting the sword. "Well, that worked out nicely," before casting a glance at Sarph. He sighed, and started carefully manipulating the man's blood to heal him as quickly as he could.

~P's E~

"So, how is everyone?" Grace asked Hibiki.

He shrugged, bringing up a few Archive screens in addition to the one he was working on. "Lucy and Tyria are alright, so are Ren and Eve," He paused when the screen showed Erza and Jura, along with Hoteye, who suddenly seemed remarkably amicable. "Uh . . okay, I'm going to assume that those two know what they're doing," he somewhat nervously commented, before progressing to Gray, Boomer, and Sherry . . and Sherry was attacking Gray and Boomer. "Uh oh,"

"What's she doing?" Grace gasped.

"Hang on, I'll patch through audio," Hibiki frowned, keying in a few more commands, and suddenly sound came through.

"- your fault he's dead!" Sherry shrieked as she, riding a massive tree monster created by her magic, struggled against the waves of sound Boomer was throwing against her.

"Stop it! Do you think he'd want you to attack us?" Gray demanded, pent-up ice magic that he refused to release glowing in his hands. Boomer was gritting his teeth under the strain of holding Sherry back, blasting sound so high-pitched that the human ear could not register it so that Gray and Sherry could still talk.

"I don't care! Without Lyon, the - the world doesn't have any more love~" Sherry sobbed.

"You're selling yourself short," a familiar voice called, and Gray and Sherry turned in surprise. Hibiki promptly adjusted the camera so that they could see the speaker

Sherry gasped, drinking in the sight of Lyon standing before them. "Do you really believe that a little thing like a bomb would kill me?" he chuckled. "After all, we Lamia Scale wizards aren't like you Fairies or Phoenixes. We don't die so easily,"

"Lyon!" Sherry squealed, releasing her magic and running towards him, unbothered by the waves of sound buffeting her, which in turn rapidly abated as Boomer, panting, realised that the threat was over.

"I'm touched that you care so much, Sherry, but you know this isn't the right way to mourn my death," Lyon gently reprimanded her as she hugged him.

Hibiki nodded as Grace, Wendy and Carla, who had joined him to watch, breathed simultaneous sighs of relief. "Well, that resolved itself nicely," he smiled, relieved.

"What about Pierce?" Grace asked, and Wendy nodded. "Yeah, and Natsu?"

"One sec," With a few keystrokes, Hibiki brought up a live feed of Pierce, Natsu and Happy. Kit had appeared, precariously perched on Pierce's shoulder as usual, and even as they watched, Pierce shook himself in a futile attempt to dislodge the yokai.

But the situation they were in was a little more interesting; they were crouched, hidden, in a tree, watching Cobra, as well as a man with blue hair who they didn't recognise, standing near the base of the pillar of light that was Nirvana, which had a large purple symbol on it. Hibiki immediately recognised the purple symbols that were flickering in centre of the Self-Destruct Square, which it was, as a countdown.

"That is going to end badly," he breathed.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **Evidently I just can't get enough of the cultist thing. XD I mean, they're like treasure hunters. We know they're a thing in canon, but we don't see much of them because they just don't make good opponents in fights, not like dark wizards or war veterans or demons.**

 **Speaking of which; Artorias' backstory was tricky to write, I had to follow the set-up that the guy who submitted his character to me gave me (thanks again for that, Uchiha Brotherhood!) while making sure that it didn't just sound like a rehash of Erza Scarlet's past. Give me your feedback on how I did in a review!**

 **Funny story; I was going to let Artorias' powered-up mode make its debut this chapter, but after considering it, I realised that would be a bad idea. He barely even used his magic during the fight against Lorus, so most of it's making its debut here. Way better for the pacing if it happens during S-Class Trials.**

 **And yes, I put Natsu and Pierce in Erza's place as they spied on Nirvana. (No, Natsu isn't happy about Pierce keeping him quiet). Yes, this is going to cause a slight shift in the way that the latter parts of the Oracion Och arc play out, which I honestly think is a good thing. I've read way too many AUs that followed the plot to the letter, and it got boring. So I'm shifting some dynamics. Next time; Pierce Vs. Cobra, possibly with help from Natsu! Peace!**


	31. Snake Charmer

Chapter 31: Snake Charmer

"Why don't we just go down there and thrash 'em?" Natsu hissed to Pierce, keeping his voice down.

Pierce, staying perfectly still, was a lot more skilled at hiding than the Dragon Slayer, and barely even moved his lips as he spoke. "They're doing something important. We need to know what,"

"Then why don't we just beat it out of them?" Happy asked, and Kit snorted from Pierce's shoulder. "Because sometimes people don't want to tell their enemies their plans, and we don't know jack about that blue guy. He might be strong enough to beat all of us at once," Kit reasoned.

"Oh, him? That's Jellal. He's a smarmy ass that Erza knew as a kid, and a pretty tough dark wizard. But I beat him once already," Natsu shrugged it off.

Pierce cast him an irritated glare. "Well, do you think the lot of us can take on both him and Cobra at the same time?"

"Sure. You've got a magic flute, and I've already got one win against the other guy. It'll be a cinch," Natsu shrugged, and was about to jump down, but paused, sniffing. "Hey, wait. I smell old people,"

The Beast Tamer raised an eyebrow. "Old people?"

Further conversation was forestalled as footsteps sounded, and Brain strode into the clearing. Four pairs of legal eyes shot open in surprise, as Brain strode into the clearing, directly beneath their tree, and approached the other two dark wizards, who turned to face him.

Kit gasped, seeing Jellal from the front. "Oh man . . that Jellal guy didn't just put a Self-Destruct Square on Nirvana, he put one on himself, too!"

"A what?" Pierce parroted, and Kit cast him a glance. "Exactly what it sounds like,"

"How do you know what those purple things are?" Happy asked, and Kit shrugged. "I'm almost three hundred. I've had a lot of free time, and I learnt a few things,"

They watched as the three exchanged a few words, before, with a sweep of his hand, Brain dispelled both Self-Destruct Squares, to Jellal's evident surprise. "I wish we could hear what they're saying," Pierce murmured.

Suddenly, Brain raised his staff to the air and cast some kind of spell - and the world suddenly trembled around them. The ground burst upwards, and the tree shook. "Happy!" Natsu squeaked, feeling the familiar motions in his gut that signalled his motion-sickness kicking in, and the winged cat leapt up, his Aera kicking in, and picked him up, leaving Pierce and Kit to helplessly tumble out of the tree.

Brain looked over with an eyebrow raised as Pierce, on instinct, played the tune to summon Raya from his flute, and the firebird emerged . . seconds after he hid the ground with a _thunk_. Kit had it worse, though; his semi-corporeal form was driven several feet underground by the impact.

The Electrian scholar tched. "Cobra? Kill them," he commanded, and Cobra grinned, as Cubelios hissed. "Yes sir!"

The ground shook and began to rise, and Pierce, attempting to stagger to his feet, stumbled and fell over again, as Cobra advanced on him and Raya. The phoenix looked around nervously, eyeing the floor in concern. "Time to leave," she reasoned, offering her back for Pierce to climb onto, before launching herself into the air.

Cobra and Cubelios watched them go, and huffed. "Don't worry, master. We'll get them," Cobra reassured him, as wings unfolded from Cubelios' back, and her master took a careful stance on the segment of ear body just below her head, as she took off in pursuit.

Brain nodded, content that Cobra would take care of the spies, and looked around in satisfaction as buildings began to emerge from the ground, including directly under his feet, as the second stage of Nirvana activated around him.

"Oi! You!" The man turned in surprise, and saw Natsu, with Happy keeping him in the air, hovering above them. "We got unfinished business!" he declared, and dive-bombed him. Brain tensed, readying for combat as magic built in his staff . . but blinked in shock as Natsu and Happy swooped straight past him and slammed into Jellal, snatching him up and flying away. Brain followed them with his gaze in confusion, but shrugged. He didn't need Jellal anymore anyway; they could have him. He'd settle for Nirvana.

"Hey! Put me down! Who are you, why are you doing this?" Jellal protested as Natsu and Happy dragged him through the air.

Happy paused at this, as did Natsu, and the Dragon Slayer glared down at him. "Who am I? I'm the guy who handed you your ass after those stunts you pulled at the Tower of Heaven! Don't tell me you forgot!" he snapped, using his free hand to slap Jellal in the face as though that would somehow cause him to remember him.

"I'm sorry," Jellal spluttered between blows, "but I seem to have somehow developed amnesia. I honestly don't know who you are, or what the Tower of Heaven is. The only thing I can remember is a name; 'Erza',"

"Is that so?" Natsu blinked, and growled through his fangs. "Well, lemme tell ya. You're Jellal Fernandes, former Master of the Tower of Heaven, and ringleader of a slave cult devoted to the construction of a massive chunk of evil magic that you were gonna use to revive Zeref, the most evil wizard in history. Ringing any bells yet?"

Jellal paled, but Natsu wasn't done. "You also abused and scarred Erza, one of my best friends, turned her childhood friends against her and tried to sacrifice her to provide the magic energy for your little plot. You made her cry, and I'll never forgive that!" he shouted in anger.

"I . . I . ." Jellal stammered, but further conversation was forestalled by a frenzied phoenix cry. Natsu cast a glance in that direction, spotting Pierce and Raya duelling with Cobra and Cubelios. "We should go help them," Happy suggested, and Natsu nodded. "I guess,"

They hovered above one of the buildings that were erupting from the ground, and Natsu unceremoniously dropped Jellal. "You wait here. I'll deal with you later," And, with that, the two of them jetted away to deal with the Poison wizard.

Jellal shook his head to himself. "No . . it can't be!" He grimaced, with new resolve. "I have to find her . . have to atone,"

~P's E~

"What the hell is that?" Tyria gasped, looking up at the massive city, supported by six mighty legs, that suddenly towered above the Worth Woodsea.

"I dunno, but it looks nasty," Lucy gulped.

Tyria jumped as one of the legs slammed down not far away form where she and Lucy were running through the forest, after deciding that the Motorbike was draining too much of her magic power. She paused, and looked up. "Grab on! TechType: Jetpack!"

"Wha - hey!" Lucy squealed in protest before she realised what was going on as Tyria, the massive fans of her flight pack unfolding from her back, scooped her up by the armpits and flew up towards Nirvana.

~P's E~

On the other side of Nirvana, Erza, wearing her Titania armour and carrying Jura in one hand, Hoteye in the other, also flew up towards Nirvana.

~P's E~

At Hibiki's position, Grace, Wendy and Carla were watching the massive machine in horror, while Hibiki had his back turned, and was frantically searching his Archive for information.

Grace's eyes, though, were fixed on an orange triangle above the city, duelling with a purple-ish wavy line, both of which had stick figures on their backs. "That's Pierce!" she breathed, reality rippling around her fists as her magic flared up with her panic.

"How can you tell?" Wendy asked, and Grace shrugged. "He has a phoenix,"

"Fair point," the Sky Dragon Slayer admitted.

"I've gotta help him," Grace breathed, seeing that Raya didn't seem to be doing so well - and vanished. Wendy blinked, looking around to see where Grace had gone, and saw her in mid-air, where she promptly disappeared into another distortion of reality and reappeared further away.

"Well, what are you waiting for, child?" Wendy turned to see Carla already had her wings out and was glaring at her impatiently. "Let's go!" she demanded.

"Got it!" Carla promptly snatched her by the shirt and took off, carrying Wendy in pursuit.

~P's E~

"Come on, Pierce, tame that snake!" Rays encouraged, and Pierce shook his head. "It's not that simple. Cobra has her worked up into a frenzy! She won't listen like this!"

Wheeling in mid-air, Raya blasted a stream of flame in Conra's direction, and Cubelios writhed, beating her wings, to avoid it. "Well, do something!"

"Right. Inky? You up for some fun?" Pierce called into his flute. Raya smiled through her beak, knowing where this was going.

Cobra charged again, and Pierce thanked the gods for the fact that their opponent seemed to be as focused on melee combat as he was focused on ranged, as it gave them an advantage that they probably couldn't win without.

Rapidly alternating between the first two notes of Inky's Summon chant, Pierce blasted a machine-gun-like series of shots of ink in Cobra's direction. Buffeted by the blasts of viscous liquid, Cobra instinctively shielded his eyes. Cubelios hissed as the ink splattered her, recoiling, and as she did, Cobra started to lose his balance.

"Knox! Now!" Pierce commanded, pulling his flute away from his mouth and pointing the crack that ran down its length in Cobra's direction, and a snarling werewolf emerged with a flicker of light, launching himself through the air and bowling into the dark wizard, knocking him straight off his perch.

Pierce decided not to worry about the fact that Cobra and Knox were falling out of the sky and take the opportunity to tame the winged snake. He pressed his flute back to his mouth, ready to start playing the notes of the capture tune - but suddenly the snake was nowhere to be seen.

It took him a second to locate her, and Pierce was more than a little surprised to see Cubelios darting downwards in a desperate attempt to catch her master.

"The hell?" Raya squeaked, even as she flexed her wings and dived after them, Pierce playing the tune to recall Knox as she did.

Knox vanished, returning to the flute, and Cobra wrapped his arms around Cubelios, abruptly halting his descent as she pulled up.

Pierce frowned. Why would the abused companion of a sadistic dark wizard do something like that for her master? Maybe her mind was enslaved - wait.

It might just be a trick of the light, but it looked to him an awful lot like Cobra had affectionately stroked the snake in gratitude as he pulled himself back into position on her back. Could it be that he actually cared about her?

The two wizards, riding their respective mounts, faced each other. With a wry smile, Pierce noted that Cobra looked pissed. He was about to open up some dialogue, to get a better understanding of what he'd thought he'd seen, when Cubelios suddenly shifted two feet to the right.

A second later, a flaming Dragon Slayer, carried by his noisy blue cat, passed through the space where he had been. Pierce raised his eyebrows in surprise, impressed that Cobra had dodged the assault.

"Thanks, but it's not all that difficult to hear those two coming," Pierce looked back at the Poison wizard in surprise, noticing his cocky smirk, and wondered; 'Did he just read my mind?'

"Yeah, I did. I also heard the thoughts of those two bumbling fairies," Cobra snorted. "That's how I knew they were coming,"

"That could have just been a variety of Ward Magic," Pierce said, testing the waters, before thinking; 'But if you can really hear my thoughts, you'll know something that I never tell anyone but my closest friends; that the identity of my father -'

"Is Jarod Blastreyne," Cobra finished his sentence, even as he thought the words. Pierce blanched. There was no way he could have known that any other way . . it was true. Cobra could hear his thoughts.

Cubelios effortlessly dodged another thoughtless blow from Natsu and Happy. "Hey! Quit moving around and fight me already!" Natsu demanded.

"Alright then. Raya, I'm thinking that we should attack from the left, al _right_?" Pierce whispered to Raya. "All right," she agreed. Maybe he could use this ability against his enemy -

"You're going to attack from the right, while thinking about attacking from the left," Cobra snorted, folding his arms. "How predictable,"

"Damn, he saw through it," Raya cursed.

Natsu and Happy hovered next to them. "So you're telling me this guy can hear whatever we think?" Natsu asked, and Pierce nodded. "This is gonna be a pain,"

"I don't believe it. I'm . . I'm gonna think about nothing but fish, and see if he gets it!" Happy declared.

"Are you thinking about fish?" Cobra deadpanned, and Happy gasped. "He got it!"

"Alright, my turn," Natsu frowned, locking eyes with Cobra and thinking. Cobra raised an eyebrow, before suddenly laughing. "Hah! That's a good joke,"

"Well, now I feel left out," Pierce frowned, before returning to his own thoughts as to how to defeat Cobra - and an idea struck him. "Everyone! Think about distracting things; the last book you read, favourite movies, songs, anything!"

"I'm supposed to have read a book now?" Natsu blinked, before Happy whispered something to him. "Oh, right! Yeah, I liked those . . wonder what the little numbers on the front were, though,"

"I'm thinking Boomer's last music video," Pierce suggested, and Raya nodded, flexing her wings and diving towards Cobra. She and Pierce did everything they could to fill their minds with nothing but the lyrics to 'A Phoenix' on their minds.

But to no avail. Cobra dodged every strike, no matter how loud the music in Pierce's mind was. Happy's marching-band chants of "Fish! Fish! Fish! Fish!" and Natsu's off-key rendition of "Yankee Doodle went to town, riding on a pony . . ." were no more effective, as not a single hit landed and their foe took every opportunity to hammer them with counter strikes of his own.

"Pull back!" Pierce finally shouted, as Raya gasped for oxygen after breathing so much fire, and his muscles strained from holding onto her and trying to punch Cobra. The phoenix gratefully wheeled away and resumed hovering a safe distance - at which point Pierce realised Natsu hadn't retreated with him. The Dragon Slayer was still raining blow after blow towards the Poison wizard, and Pierce inhaled in shock as one of them made contact. From the way Cobra recoiled at the contact, he was surprised too, giving Natsu an opening to push the advantage he had somehow gained.

"No way," Cobra exclaimed as the fight suddenly became a lot more standard, and blows were exchanged between the two at an incredible rate. "He's fighting without thinking at all!"

"Did Natsu just turn his mindless obsession with fighting into an advantage?" Pierce blinked in confusion, before shaking his head in bemusement. "That guy,"

"Enough!" Cobra roared, knocking Natsu and Happy away as he and Cubelios retreated. "Fine. Time for me to get serious! Now, Cubelios!"

Upon command, the snake opened its mouth and exhaled a massive mist of purplish smoke. Pierce tensed, fully expecting it to prove poisonous, but was shocked when Cobra opened his mouth and began inhaling the noxious gas.

"The hell?" Natsu demanded, and Pierce, beckoning Raya to hesitantly get closer, watched as Cobra's muscles bulged, and he bared teeth that sharpened into fangs. Purple and white scales manifested on his forearms and hands as his fingers sharpened into claws.

"Don't tell me that guy's a serpentine lycanthrope," Pierce gasped. "Please don't be a basilisk, please don't be a basilisk," he muttered.

"What? No," Cobra frowned in his direction. "I am the Poison Dragon Slayer!"

"What?" Happy gasped, and Pierce groaned. "Not another punk with a dragon lacrima,"

"That's right," the dark wizard grimaced menacingly at Natsu. With that, he suddenly jumped from Cubelios' back and launched a flying kick at the other Dragon Slayer, with such speed that Natsu had no chance to dodge. Kicking off Natsu, Cobra leapt back onto Cubelios' back and watched in satisfaction as Natsu gritted his teeth, pressing his hands to the spot where Cobra's foot had made contact with his exposed skin. "What the hell was that?"

"Do the words 'Poison Dragon Slayer' mean nothing to you?" Cobra scathingly replied. "My scales have the power to decay anything that they touch. Including human flesh,"

"Oh really?" For the second time, Cobra was knocked from his perch. This time, Raya had dive-bombed him and smothered him with her wings, bringing Cobra, tucked against her underbelly, and Pierce, clinging onto her back, uncomfortably close.

"Funny thing about phoenix feathers," Pierce declared, before breaking the fight/dialogue convention by punching Cobra in the face mid-sentence. "They're incredibly resistant to most magics!" Another punch, taking advantage of the fact that Cobra's limbs were restrained. "It's why they're so valuable on the black market, y'now," A third punch; "A coat made of them is all but immune to most forms of magic. Including yours!"

Finally, they got too close to the ground and Raya spread her wings, pulling into a jerky glide. Seconds after, Cubelios swooped out of nowhere and caught Cobra again.

Raya shook herself, dislodging drips of poison from her feathers. "I am gonna need a bath so bad," the adolescent phoenix hissed through a clenched beak. Noting her discomfort, Pierce pressed a hand to the base of Raya's neck and shot a charge of his magic energy into her body. Immediately, her breathing evened out, and she nodded in gratitude. "Alright. Time for round two,"

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" Natsu shrieked, launching an attack at Cobra. The Poison wizard caught the blow in his fist and squeezed, digging his claws into Natsu's flaming skin. "You just don't learn, do you?" With a callous flick, he tossed Natsu in Pierce's direction, and Happy corrected, bringing himself and his passenger to a halt near Pierce and Raya.

By now, the battle had drawn the three parties back above the city, and beneath them, the mighty body of Nirvana moved. Pierce spotted Brain doing something with a big magic circle on the tallest building, but he didn't let his attention stray from the fight.

"I've got an idea," Natsu whispered to Pierce. "We should get in close and hit him with a wide burst attack, that way he can't dodge,"

Pierce thought about this and immediately realised the flaw in the plan. "Wait, no!" But Natsu had already gone in, inhaling as Happy swooped towards Cobra and Cubelios.

"Go after him. When Cobra pre-empts him, he'll leave himself vulnerable," Pierce commanded. "But we'll hit Natsu!" Raya protested. "We'll hit a Fire Dragon Slayer with fire," Pierce reasoned, and his partner immediately realised the flaw in her argument. "Oh. Right,"

"Fire Dragon's Roar!" Natsu shouted, hovering just a few feet away from their enemy and launching the widest-burst attack he could - and, just as Pierce had expected, Cobra darted towards him, Cubelios moving her rider behind their enemy. Natsu was taken by surprise and Cobra chuckled as he punched him in the back. "Poison Dragon's Fang Thrust," he smirked. "Just because I'm in Dragon Slayer mode now, doesn't mean I can't still hear your thoughts,"

"Well pay more attention to ours! Solar Blast!" Pierce shouted, and Raya obliged, launching an explosive payload of fiery energy point-blank into Cobra's back. The attack hit, sending Cobra pitching forwards, where he promptly collided with Natsu, losing his balance and falling from Cubelios again. This time, though, he grabbed onto Natsu's shirt to arrest his fall.

Happy gasped as the weight he was bearing suddenly doubled. "I can't . . hold you both!" he squeaked.

"Keep him distracted! I smell opportunity!" Pierce shouted, focusing on Cubelios and pressing his flute to his lips. The magic snake was tired by now, and Pierce hoped that would give him the opening he needed to tame her.

"Distracted? How do I do that?" Natsu protested, frantically trying to dislodge Cobra from his vest, but the man's claws had torn holes into the lining and he was lodged tight.

Pierce didn't respond, he was already playing. Soft, entrancing notes echoed through the air, and Cubelios, who had been about to go to her master's rescue, paused, and inquisitively looked at the source of the entrancing music. It was so nice . . surely it wouldn't hurt to investigate?

Cobra, still struggling with Natsu and Happy, looked up to see what was happening, and his eyes widened. "What are you doing? Stop that!"

The flute's portal was opening now, slower, as was usual when taming a new beast. Pierce continued playing, grinning as he did. It was working. He just had to hold it.

Natsu and Cobra were wrestling in mid-air by now, Cobra desperately tying to reach Cubelios. "No! Cubelios! No!"

But it was too late, as the snake disappeared into the portal, and Pierce breathed a sigh of relief. "It's about time that went right,"

Cobra bellowed in anguish. The fight forgotten, he scrabbled towards Pierce, giving Natsu the perfect opportunity to snatch his collar and hold him at arm's length, effectively rendering him helpless. "Give her back! Give her back!" he demanded, glaring at Pierce through teary eyes.

"What should we do with him?" Natsu asked.

Raya hovered, allowing Pierce to look Cobra in the eyes. He raised his eyebrows in surprise; this wasn't an act. He genuinely cared about Cubelios. Man, now he felt a little bad for taking his snake away.

Suddenly, he went silent, and Natsu retracted his fist. "I was getting sick of that," he unrepentantly shrugged.

"Yeah, I guess," Pierce nodded. "Leave him on a rooftop or something. We can come back for him later. Right now," he looked at Nirvana beneath them. "That thing is our top priority,"

Natsu followed his gaze and nodded, before his eyes brightened. "Hey! Look down there! It's Lucy and, uh, Thalia?"

"Tyria," Pierce corrected, but nodded all the same. "Come on, let's go meet up with them,"

"Hey, wait for us!" Suddenly, a small, green-haired shape appeared from nowhere and clung to Pierce. "Oh, hi Grace," he nonchalantly nodded as Wendy, carried by Carla, followed.

"Oh, hey, the baby dragons are here. Now it's a party!" Natsu grinned. "Come on, Happy! And Pieface? Try to keep up!"

"Aye, sir!" the little blue cat led the charge down to Nirvana, and the others followed him. Pierce facepalmed as he did. "Pieface? Now he's just being insulting," he complained.

~P's E~

Brain traced his face as another line vanished from his cheek, leaving only three. First Mylene (though he had never really expected much from her), then Racer, then Angel and Canceller, and now Cobra . . and Hoteye had defected to the legal guilds. It was only Midnight and himself left, now.

"Midnight?" he called to his adoptive son. "It's time to wake,"

Sleepily, the boy, on his flying carpet, nodded to himself distantly. He raised his head, gazed with closed eyes towards Brain, and inclined it deferentially.

His eyes opened.

 _~P's E~_

 _"Welcome, for the time being, to Doctor Kit's Documentaries! Because this chapter is the first time it's really come up, I'm here to explain to you exactly what having his flute cracked does for Pierce!" Kit grinned, twitching his tail._

 _"For the most part, it gives me more screentime! Everyone's noted in canon how Lucy's Celestial Spirits have a habit of showing up of their own volition in times of need, right? Normally, that's not possible for a flute like Pierce's; only one beast can be out at a time, and only if he intentionally calls them. While summoned from his flute, a magical conduit exists between Pierce and the being in question that allows Pierce to channel his magic power into them to strengthen them. As Pierce gets stronger, so do the beings under his command," Kit explained, showing a diagram of the flute with two arrows, each pointing to a crude drawing of Knox; from the end of the flute, Knox is energetic, with lines coming off him, and from the crack, Knox is tired and grouchy._

 _"However, having his flute cracked means that his beasts can summon themselves through a sort of glitch in his magic; one or more of Pierce's beasts can come through the crack at a given time of their own volition. However, because this isn't how the magic was supposed to be used, the conduit that exists if Pierce does it properly doesn't exist, so Pierce can't power up anyone who comes out of the crack," Kit continued._

 _"This is particularly good for me. I'm supposed to be to Pierce as Happy is to Natsu - which does not make me a sidekick, and I will possess and destroy the computer of anyone who says it does," the yokai growled. "But Pierce can only have one beast around at a time, therefore I can't be out at the same time as anyone else - unless I emerge through the crack. So now, I can be here all the time!" he grinned. "See ya next time, on DK's Ds!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **Y'now, I'm not sure if it shows, but I really don't like Carla much. She was good during the Edolas arc, but other than that, she's just too bossy and snappish for my liking.**

 **Anyway. It only took thirty chapters, but Pierce finally has a new beast!**

 **Seriously. I've been planning for him to tame Cubelios from the very start - and I know about the whole 'Cubelios/Kinana' thing. I've got a plan for that. ^^**

 **Incidentally, as for Grace's ability to 'fly' by jumping and sending herself in different directions, allowing herself to maintain momentum as long as she doesn't stop moving? It was inspired by an anime series called Wakfu, in which the main character, Yugo, has the ability to create portals. He can 'fly' in much the same way, constantly leaping between portals. Grace's ability is effectively the same, just that her portals are seen as no more than ripples in mid-air. So if you've seen that series, it'll give you a good idea (and if you haven't, you should. It's good, and it gave me a few ideas that I plan to implement in the future of the story.**

 **Also, if this wasn't obvious, the fight between Lucy and Angel happened about the same way. The only major difference is that Lucy was wearing Mylene's coat at the time, and Hibiki taught her Hyper-Magic remotely. And that wasn't enough of a difference for me to devote most of a chapter to writing it.**

 **Oh well. Peace!**


	32. The Countdown To Zero

Chapter 32: The Countdown to Zero

The Trimens, along with Gray, Lyon, Boomer and Sherry, watched as Nirvana strode away from them. "We'll never catch up with that thing on foot," Ren said what they were all thinking.

"According to my Archive, Jura, Erza, Wendy, Natsu, Lucy, Pierce, Tyria and Grace are on board that thing. As well as the cats," Hibiki explained.

"So we're still missing Sarph and Artorias," Boomer frowned.

"Don't forget Lord!" Eve quickly weighed in.

"Yes, we're also missing Ichiya," Lyon agreed, pinching his nose at the thought of the pungent man.

"Over here!" The group turned to see Sarph and Artorias, ferrying an unconscious Canceller on a floating cushion of blood, emerge into the clearing.

"Sarph! Artorias!" Boomer grinned, relieved to see his guildmates.

"We're fine. Mostly," Sarph reassured the Coalition, and Artorias nodded assent. "But we will need to get this guy back to Bob's," the blood wizard weighed in.

"We also need a way to pursue that thing," Gray pointed out.

"What about the Garuda?" Sarph suggested. "It's still docked by Bob's vacation house,"

"Sounds like a good plan to me, but what about Boss?" Hibiki asked.

"We can always come back and find him later," Boomer reasoned. "But it's only a matter of time until Brain uses Nirvana on a town, or a guild, or maybe even an entire city!" He shuddered, thinking back to the fate of Ghoulia. "I'm not letting that happen if I can help it,"

"I hate to say it, but he's right. Sir will have to wait," Hibiki agreed. "Let's get going,"

~P's E~

Not making a sound - which was simple, because, as an intangible being, Kit had to made a deliberate effort to make any sound - a certain white fox peered out of the floor Brain was standing on, watching him use Archive magic to control Nirvana as he stood in the centre of a magic circle. "Hmmm," he silently muttered, wondering if there was anything he could do to interfere.

When Kit had fallen out of the tree and forced underground by momentum and gravity, he'd been extremely surprised to find himself inside what appeared to be a massive building buried a scant few feet beneath the ground, exactly where the pillar of light had been coming from. Investigating the stairs had proven that the building was incredibly deep, but before he could explore, there had been a massive rumbling and the building had begun to surface. So the yokai had ridden along as Brain activated and took control of Nirvana, and now he was carefully watching, remembering everything he could and trying to work out the best way to sabotage it.

So far, he hadn't seen anything. There weren't even any nearby ruined pillars that he could 'accidentally' knock over, which was disappointing.

But an opportunity would present itself. He was sure.

~P's E~

Ezra touched down, the swords of her Heaven's Wheel armour slowing from their rotation. Jura and Hoteye landed behind her, and she turned to face them. "I saw Natsu and some of the Phoenixes flying over the other side of the city. I think I should go meet up with them, while you two look around on foot,"

"I agree. Brain could be anywhere," Jura nodded. "Should we two separate as well?"

"We must. It pains me to leave you, dear friend, but I have every confidence we shall meet again when this is done. Hoo-ah," Hoteye nodded.

Erza left the two friends to say their goodbyes, and flew back up into the air as Nirvana lumbered onwards. In the corner of her vision, she spotted a town on the ground, which Brain seemed to be passing with no interest. "Odd . . does he have a particular target in mind?"

However, all thoughts were driven from her mind as she spotted a blue head in the streets below. "No," Erza breathed in surprise. "It can't be . . Jellal?"

~P's E~

Having joined up with Lucy and Tyria, they, along with Natsu, Pierce, Grace, Wendy, Happy and Carlos, were making for the central tower, where Pierce had seen Brain earlier.

"So, if I'm counting right, the only members of the Och left are that Midnight guy and Brain himself, right?" Lucy asked, and Natsu nodded. "Yup!" Then he paused. "Wait, Midnight's a guy? You're sure she ain't a girl?"

Grace hummed thoughtfully. "You know, I'm not certain,"

"Me neither," Pierce admitted. "Did Hibiki ever mention her gender?"

"Midnight is male. I remember," Tyria flatly shut down the discussion, before looking around nervously. "I hope he didn't hear any of that,"

Pierce nodded, doing his best to avert his eyes from his teammate. It hadn't escaped his notice that Tyria's trousers had been shredded (and not replaced) since he had last seen her, and he was trying not to look at her underwear too much. Instead he focused on the rather expensive-looking coat Lucy was wearing. It reminded him of Artorias' robe, but navy blue and with more furry ruffs and gold ornaments.

Eventually, they reached the tower. "So that Brain guy's at the top, right?" Natsu asked.

"Yeah, I saw him too. Unless he's moved," Wendy weighed in, and Carla tched. "I doubt it. That's obviously the control centre. Why would he leave?"

Approaching footsteps alerted them that someone was nearby. The Dragon Slayers heard it first, but immediately alerted their partners, and everyone turned in unison, ready to face -

"Oh, good. I wondered where you'd all got to," Jura breathed a sigh of relief. As one, the group deflated, and Pierce chuckled. "You gave us a scare,"

"Brain's at the top of that tower," Wendy recapped, and the Wizard Saint nodded. "I see. Give me a minute," he suggested, bringing his hands together, and a magic circle appeared between them.

"What are you doing?" Tyria frowned, but gasped as the ground shook. Everyone watched in amazement as the tower shook and began to sink into the ground, floors splintering and vanishing into the subterranean hole Jura was opening beneath the building.

"Oi! Careful!" Pierce was extremely surprised to see a white mass leap out of the tower wall and leap towards them. On instinct, he caught Kit before he could phase through the ground again, and, his momentum halted by passing through Pierce's hands, Kit landed on the ground with relative comfort. "Don't just sink buildings into the ground all willy-nilly!" he protested at Jura.

"There you are. I was worried about you!" Pierce admonished the yokai, who huffed in response. "Not my fault I got stuck up on this city,"

"Stuck? How?" Tyria blinked. "Couldn't you have just escaped down one of the legs?"

"You mean one of the six flexible pipes that are channelling so much magic energy out of the ground that it would obliterate my essence if I got anywhere near them?" Kit replied irritably as Jura continued to carefully bring the building down in the background.

"Pipes of magic energy? Seriously?" Lucy blinked, and Pierce thought about this. "You're telling us that this entire city is powered by those legs sucking magic energy out of the ground,"

"Yeah," Kit nodded. "And this place is so full of evil magic, it's making me sick. I an't believe I'm saying this, but I'd rather be in the flute than here,"

"Fine," Pierce nodded, playing the tune to recall Kit, and the yokai vanished.

"Well, this is good. All we have to do is destroy the legs, and this entire place will collapse," Tyria smiled, but Natsu seemed despondent. "But what about fighting that Brain guy?"

"You're forgetting our objective. We can't just stop Nirvana, the goal is to defeat and capture the Oracion Och," Jura pointed out. "And we're about to take on their leader. Be prepared, all of you,"

"Fools. Dark Delete!" There were only a couple of storeys left of the building, but pulses of dark magic flashed down from the top and swarmed them. "Get down!" Pierce shouted, pulling Grace to the ground. Lucy and Tyria dodged, the balls of energy grazing them, and Carla pulled Wendy out of the way of one. Natsu punched the attack that came at him and deflected it into a wall, and a plate of stone shot up from the ground to block with no apparent effort on Jura's part.

Finally the top of the building was level with the ground, revealing Brain standing in the centre of a massive magic circle. The man regarded them all with a contemptuous leer, before his eyes alit on Grace. "Ah, I see you've brought me a present. How thoughtful of you to return my investment,"

Pierce straightened, gritting his teeth. "Come on, everyone! Are we just gonna sit around and let him hit us?"

"You're right!" Lucy agreed. Natsu, though, forewent verbal concurrence entirely and responded by throwing a "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" in Brain's direction. The dark wizard deflected it with little visible effort, throwing the Dragon Slayer away, into the air, but Natsu bought Lucy the second she needed to make her own move. "Open, Gate of the Lion! Leo!" With a doorbell, a blond man in a black suit with glasses and cat ears in his shaggy hair manifested.

"Can't get shown up by a Celestial wizard," Pierce smirked, rapidly playing the short tune needed to summon Crystal from his flute. A streak of white energy and the blue-skinned mermaid, armed with her stone daggers, appeared right next to Loke. Spirit and mermaid charged forwards, immediately realising that Brain was the enemy.

Behind him, Tyria knew she needed to be serious off the bat. "Gear Change! Mark: Second!" she declared, feeling her hair sharpen into silver spikes and her eyes light up neon blue.

"Reality Dragon's Spiral Slash!" Grace, spinning like a dervish, emerged from a blip in reality behind Brain and karate-chopped him with hands cloaked in sharpened reality.

Brain tched, knocked Loke and Crystal away, before reversing his grip on his staff and blasting Grace with dark magic. Squeaking, she lost her hold on her magic and fell to the ground.

"Grace!" Pierce gasped, but Tyria forestalled him, already running forwards as she activated a spell. "I'll get her! TechType Mark II: Electrostatic Blade Dance!" Rollerblades and spears manifested as she sped forwards.

"You think you can escape me, you little maggot?" Brain cackled, an ugly grin bared at Grace - but he was forestalled by a sheet of rock manifesting between them as Jura advanced. "Your fight is with me," he imperiously declared as Tyria planted a pylon in the ground to Brain's left, before sliding behind the rock shelf, scooping up Grace, and leaving another spike in her place.

"Oh, how heroic," Brain snorted, barely even noticing as Tyria left the third pylon to his right. "Jura! Catch!" she declared, throwing the last one to the Wizard Saint.

Jura grasped the shaft of metal in his hand. "Put it in the ground!" Tyria commanded as she carried Grace back to where Wendy was on standby as medic, with Pierce and Lucy keeping nearby to guard her.

Obligingly, the Rock wizard jammed the sharp end into the stone - and it immediately activated, forming a trapezoidal field of electricity with Brain in the centre. Jura smiled as Brain twitched, his magics activating to shield himself from the electricity, and decided to take advantage of his distraction.

Unfortunately, Natsu, diving down from the sky with Happy's aid - as the cat had caught him in mid-air after Brain tossed him away - beat him to it. "Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!" he crowed, headbutting Brain with all his might - and the dark wizard caught him in both hands and slammed him into the ground, where Natsu convulsed from contact with the electricity, before throwing him at Jura before he could respond. The two wizards fell to the ground in a heap, as Brain picked up one of the spears and effortlessly broke it in half, shattering the electric field.

"Regulus Impact!" Loke shouted, throwing a two-handed punch with fists that glowed golden. Brain, though, pressed his hands together before drawing them apart, flexing his fingers as he did, and a magic seal appeared between them - and, the moment that Leo touched the seal, he vanished in a flicker of light.

Lucy gasped. "Did he just forcibly close Loki's gate?"

"You'll pay for that! He was hot!" Crystal shouted, rushing forwards in search of vengeance. Brain casually flexed his left hand's fingers, and suddenly the temperature got noticeably hotter. As it did, Crystal slowed, sweat breaking out across her body, and continued to lose momentum until, finally, she paused feet away from Brain, panting for breath.

'Shit,' Pierce thought. 'Heat; Crystal's weakness. Mermaids need to stay moist or they're rendered helpless, and too much heat dries them out,' Seeing that Brain was about to hit the dark-haired girl with a point-blank attack, he rapidly recalled her into his flute.

"So, this is what legal guilds have to offer?" Brain chuckled derisively. "I suppose it's not surprising. After all, you can only get so far in the light without stepping into the shadows,"

He strode towards where Lucy, Pierce, Tyria, Grace, Wendy and Carla were congregated. "Now, I think that I'll take what belongs to me before bidding you all a final goodnight," he smirked, eyes fixed on Grace.

Pierce's brow furrowed as he straightened, stepping between the dark wizard and his quarry. "No _fucking_ way," he growled, the rare expletive greeted by a gasp from Tyria.

The tech wizard, though, immediately stood up next to Pierce. "Exactly. You won't ever get to Grace!" she declared, electricity playing through the silver spikes of her hair.

Behind them, Grace's eyes widened and she smiled, seeing the lengths that her guildmates would go to on her behalf.

"Fine. Filthy worms," Brain's lip curled, and suddenly both Phoenixes were telekinetically thrown away, smashing into buildings at opposite ends of the rubble-filled courtyard. Wendy, Carla and Lucy all quickly followed before they could even try to help, leaving Grace alone to face down her oppressor.

"Well now. It's about time that my little toy returned to her owner, wouldn't you agree?" Brain smirked.

Grace tensed, her fingers splayed. She felt Brain's telepathic magic niggling at the edges of her brain, but a single image in her head drove it back; that of Pierce and Tyria standing protectively before her. "Pierce and Tyria . . were willing to give up everything for me," she hissed.

"Oh, what now?" Brain rolled his eyes.

"They're my family. Phoenix's Eye is my family," Grace spoke to herself, as reality became hazy and distorted around her.

"Stop this foolishness," the aged man commanded.

 _"I won't let you take away my family!"_ Grace shrieked.

Brain's jaw set. "Fine," he snorted. "I see I will have to teach you some manners," He raised his staff, concentrating his magic. "If you're as strong as you should be, you will survive this. Barely. Dark Rondo!" he commanded, unleashing the mighty dark spell again, focused entirely on Grace. A writhing, heaving mass of spectres with screaming, agonised faces emerged from the staff, forming into a funnel of evil magic that shot out in all directions to envelop the young Dragon Slayer in darkness.

In response, Grace opened her mouth and _sucked_. At once, the Dark Rondo stopped spreading outwards and started funnelling in, drawn inexorably towards her mouth. The spell fragmented and shattered, collapsing into grey particles and tiny blue specks of ethernano that dissipated as soon as they appeared, while the grey particles of reality were drawn into her mouth and consumed.

Within a moment, Grace had finished eating the spell. Brain frowned, seeing this. "What was that?" he frowned, uncomprehending. He didn't like not knowing things.

"It's simple when you think about it," Grace answered. "Master Gajeel taught me that Dragon Slayers can power up by eating their own element. And I'm the Reality Dragon Slayer. It's kind of obvious when you think about it,"

And Brain had thought about it. He was, of course, aware of the ability of Slayer magicians to consume their element. But the logical conclusion of the situation was so extreme, even beyond his lofty hopes for Project RDS, that he had dismissed it as a possibility. Either it wouldn't function at all, or, due to the indistinct nature of the project's consumption abilities, the result would inevitably provide such a small power boost that it would be all but redundant.

But apparently his hypothesis was wrong. Because the girl certainly looked powered up now.

"I have the ability to eat _anything_ that is real and gain power from it!" Grace declared, as a corona of power erupted in the air above her. She felt the overloading magic energy inside her begging for release, and granted it, letting the magic give her direction.

She spread her arms and the phantasmagoric outline of draconian wings appeared as hazy outlines around them. "Dragon Slayer's Secret Art,"

Brain's eyes widened as, within the space of a second, he considered all the implications of Grace's actions as she crossed her arms into an 'X'. 'Dear Zeref,' he thought, 'I've outdone myself. This being, she's so powerful . . . she could defeat me, she could defeat Zero. Given time to grow, even Hades of Grimoire Heart would be no match for her. And when she reaches the height of her power . . the entire world will be subject to her wishes,' He almost chuckled, thinking of the destruction she would bring; of the likes he could only dream. A quote came to mind, and he muttered it with a perverse smile; "Look upon my works, ye mighty, and despair,"

"Dark Matter: Galaxy Rotation Wing!" As though they were scissor blades, Grace swept her arms outwards, and the wings of folded reality sent a massive surge of spatial magic towards Brain at an incredible speed, which immediately detonated against his chest, generating a massive sequence of blows of spatial magic from all angles at incredible speed and kicking up a massive plume of smoke.

When the dust cleared, Brain had collapsed, arms spreadeagled. Unseeing eyes stared up at the sky; he was completely out of it.

"My," Jura nodded as he recovered. "That was very impressive," he nodded to Grace - before pausing, seeing the way that the girl had her eyes squeezed tightly shut.

"Grace!" Pierce recognised the signs that she was struggling to control her power - something that had been happening more and more lately - immediately picking himself up and ignoring the bruises all over his body as he rushed over to her, wrapping his arms around the young Phoenix. "Stay with us, Grace. Don't lose control," he encouraged her.

Below their feet, a ghostly presence swept through the ground and entered Grace's body. For a moment, Quarla's purple eyes glittered in place of Grace's normal orange beneath closed eyelids as she siphoned off the excess magic, diffusing it into the air.

Weakly, Grace nodded, slumping into his arms. "'Mma take a nap," she moaned, resting her head on Pierce's shoulder and fading into unconsciousness.

"Is she alright?" Wendy asked, rushing over and ready to heal if necessary.

"Mostly just exhaustion. And magical instability, but that's nothing you can help with," the Tamer reassured her. "We need to get her out of here, though. It's not safe," Seriously. If she had even a small meltdown of reality magic while riding Nirvana, the results could be catastrophic.

"Go," Jura nodded. "There's only one member of the Och left, and we can handle him. After that, without anyone to draw power from, Nirvana should shut down automatically. And if not, we know that its legs are its weak point,"

Pierce nodded, Requipping his flute. He raised it to his lips, about to summon Raya, and paused. She would still be pretty tired after the fight with Cobra. He hadn't really connected with Cubelios yet, she probably wouldn't listen to him. Instead, he started playing the tune to summon Victoria.

The queen bee emerged, looking around. "What do you want now?" she irritably asked.

"We just need a lift. Normally I'd ask Raya, but she's exhausted after the last fight," her Tamer explained, lifting Grace onto Victoria's back, before climbing on after her. The bee softened, seeing the unconscious Dragon Slayer. "Alright, let'zzzz go," she agreed, lifting into the sky.

The remainder of the Coalition watched them go, and Jura turned to Wendy and Carla. "Erza and Richard are still out in the ruins somewhere. Could you two find them so that we can all meet up?"

"Sure," she nodded. "I suppose so," Carla reluctantly agreed, sprouting her wings and lifting Wendy into the air.

~P's E~

As soon as they left the city, Pierce spotted the Garuda on the horizon, flying in pursuit. "Over there," he guided Victoria.

Within minutes, they landed on the deck. Without Kit to possess the ship, or Hare to fulfil all the roles at once, it was all hands on deck to maintain the ship's flight. Gray, Lyon, Sherry and Artorias were all regularly adjusting ropes to keep it steady, Hibiki and Sarph were standing in the prow, networking their Archive, Boomer was on the tiller, and Ren was in the stern, using his Wind magic to speed the ship - which was one of the reasons that everyone was so duty-pressed; the greater speed was pushing the ship beyond its limits, and it was constantly on the verge of falling apart.

"Pierce!" Boomer grinned from the tiller, waving, before pausing as he saw Grace. "Oh, not again,"

"Over here!" Eve waved from one of the hatches leading below decks, and Pierce gratefully carried Grace towards it.

Between the two of them, they got Grace down the ladder and into a bed. Pierce subsequently breathed a sigh of relief. "So, what now?"

"Hibiki and Sarph have worked out a way to stop Nirvana. There are six lacrima powering each of the legs, except that the legs are actually -"

"Power conduits sucking magic power from the ground. Kit told us," Pierce nodded.

"Well, all six lacrima need to be destroyed at once. That'll stop Nirvana once and for all," Eve recapped.

"Sounds good to me," Pierce mentally counted off; Natsu, Lucy, Tyria, Wendy, Jura and Erza. That was enough, good.

"You should rest. You've been fighting all day, and it's almost midnight by now," Eve suggested.

"Yeah, okay," Pierce nodded, lying down in the bed next to Grace. Eve nodded and returned above decks.

But Pierce couldn't sleep. He worried about Nirvana, about Tyria still on board it, about all the people who would be affected by it. Sleep was impossible under those conditions.

"I need to do something productive. Something to take my mind off everything," he resolved, and immediately had a thought. He'd been planning to wait until he got home, but . . Pierce shrugged and played the newly set tune to summon Cubelios from his flute.

With a hiss, the giant purple snake emerged, coiled on the floor near where Pierce was sitting on his bed. "Easy, girl, easy," he cooed, sensing the animal's wariness.

Cubelios hissed inquisitively, and Pierce pulled himself off the bed, getting on the floor and putting himself on her level. "It's okay, it's okay," he reassured her.

The serpent eyed him, shifting closer and tasting the air with her tongue. Pierce slowly extended a hand, making no sudden movements and ensuring that she could see what he was doing. He was uncomfortably aware of the fact that poisonous fangs were tucked away just inside Cubelios' lips, and didn't want her to use them.

But the snake, seemingly surprisingly comfortable with human contact, allowed him to gently stroke the top of her head. The Tamer nodded reassuringly, and, closing her eyes, Cubelios lent into the contact. "Good, that's good," Pierce smiled, sitting up with legs folded and guiding Cubelios to rest her head in his lap, which she obliged. "Good girl," he nodded, continuing to stroke the back of her head.

Carefully, Pierce excused himself, convinced that Cubelios was comfortable with his presence, and continued to rub along her back, inspecting the giant snake for any evidence of injuries of abuse as he went. He was not entirely surprised to find none, indeed, Cubelios' glossy, clean coat of scales seemed exceptionally well-cared-for. After convincing the giant snake to roll onto her underbelly, it told the same story. He frowned, and, using the magical connection that had been made between him and Cubelios, searched her for any presence of magic affecting her.

 _Here_ he found something. Numerous enchantments had been cast upon this poor being - because he wasn't really sure if he could consider Cubelios a snake, after seeing all of this. Pierce was an amateur in the complexities of hexes and enchantments at best, but he could tell that so much magic had been placed upon Cubelios that it was practically impossible to discern anything about her origins. For all he knew, she might not naturally even be a snake. The only one he could definitively trace was an enchantment placed by Brain to give her poisonous fangs and breath, along with the echoes of a few healing spells. But none of them had the poisonous touch of Cobra's magic about them. Pierce wasn't certain, but it seemed more likely than not that whatever had been done to Cubelios had happened before she came into Cobra's custody - which finally confirmed his suspicions.

"I need to talk to Cobra," Pierce resolved.

"You also need to get some sleep!" Boomer, who had apparently been listening in, hollered from above.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **Still technically Sunday! In some time zones!**

 **But seriously, I am so sorry that my updates have been late recently; it's exam period, and I keep getting caught up in my studies and forgetting to post . . . I'll try to do better!**

 **Anyway. I have been dreading the day that Fairy Tail's dashing Spirit and Phoenix's Eye's promiscuous mermaid meet. I hoped I could prolong it until Grand Magic Games, but no . . XD**

 **Also, I felt like Brain went down too easily in the anime. So I fleshed out the fight a bit. I mean, the fight with Zero happens like normal, so I'm not gonna bother writing it, and Grace needed a resolution to the whole thing with Brain, so . . yeah. ^^ Not to mention the final reveal of Grace's elemental consumption ability. I've been saving that for a good moment. XD**

 **But, all things considered, this is a pivotal moment in Grace's character arc. Thanks to her guild, she's finally emerged from the lingering shadow of what's been done to her and she's ready to move on. Character development, people. ^^**

 **Not to mention that the ongiong plot between Pierce and Cobra/Erik is finally getting started. Finally. XD Peace!**


	33. Erik and Edolas

Chapter 33: Erik and Edolas

 **Warning: This chapter's second half is rated M for character death, swearing, and mild sexual implications.**

Pierce woke and realised two things; the Garuda had landed, and Grace was gone.

Telling himself not to panic, he quickly checked to make sure that his flute was properly stowed in his Requip space, and rose, rushing above decks.

As he did, he discovered that the Garuda was parked outside a small, tribal-looking village that seemed totally deserted, with what he recognised as the Cait Shelter guild mark on the roof of a large building in the centre of the town, and his guildmates were approaching. "Oh, Pierce! Good, you're awake!" Tyria shouted.

In the distance, Pierce spotted that the other members of the Coalition were breaking into groups and preparing to depart. "Don't tell me I slept through the party," he protested as soon as his guildmates got back on board.

"There wasn't a party," Boomer immediately shot him down.

Pierce blinked, and immediately paled. "Did we not stop Nirvana?"

"No, no, Nirvana's just a pile of rubble now," Sarph reassured him. "The party was forestalled for other reasons,"

"Why?" the Tamer frowned.

Tyria, as the only one who had witnessed all of the events Pierce had slept through, gave him a recap of everything that had happened since he'd left; Brain had used telepathy to pretend to be Hoteye and lure everyone into a trap, which had incapacitated Jura, Brain's staff, who turned out to be alive and capable of speech, subsequently revealed that the Oracion Och were actually all connected to Brain via Body-Link magic to seal away a formidable alter ego named Zero. After Erza had defeated Midnight, Zero had awoken and promptly handed Natsu, Lucy, Tyria and Happy their asses. Hibiki and Sarph had used the Garuda's newly installed magic missiles to attack Nirvana, causing it to lose its balance and miss when it fired on Cait Shelter - the town they were parked near -, at which point they used Archive to get in contact with everyone still on board, explain the situation and how all six lacrimas running Nirvana's legs had to be destroyed at once to take it down.

Natsu, Lucy, Tyria, Erza and Wendy had all gone to take one of the lacrima, and Ichiya, who had turned out to have been on Nirvana the whole time, had joined them. Meanwhile, Jellal, who, in spite of being previously evil, had developed amnesia and, after hearing about his sins from Natsu, felt determined to recompense for past crimes. Natsu and Jellal had fought against and defeated Zero, and all six lacrimas had been destroyed, shutting down Nirvana for good. However, the Magic Council had showed up - _late_ \- and come to arrest Hoteye/Richard and Jellal, both of whom had agreed to come quietly - in spite of Fairy Tail's protests.

In the morning, though, the Coalition had regrouped at Cait Shelter, ready to celebrate in Fairy Tail fashion - however, it had been revealed that the entire existence of Cait Shelter had been a lie propogated by the benevolent spirit of the last of the Nirvits, the man who had created Nirvana to begin with, in order to give a young Wendy and Carla a home. However, now that they had made friends in Fairy Tail, Wendy and Carla no longer needed Cait Shelter. After a heartfelt goodbye, the four parties separated as Cait Shelter finally passed into the afterlife, and now everyone was making ready to go home.

"Wait a second," Pierce frowned as Tyria finished the story. "The Magic Council took all the Och members into custody? Are they still here?"

"Yes, they set up a camp on the outskirts of the forest. Why?" Sarph confirmed.

"There's someone I need to talk to,"

~P's E~

If Lahar was surprised by an airship landing in the middle of his camp and an obstinate Beast Tamer demanding to meet with one of his captives, he didn't show it.

"I was informed that the Council gave you a personal mandate to deal with Cobra and bring his snake into custody," he commented as he led Pierce through camp towards the prison cells. "I suppose this is related to that occurrence?"

"It is," Pierce confirmed. He was always wary around Council people, especially since Tyria had informed him that this same Lahar was the one who had arrested Hoteye and Jellal, but he seemed pleasant enough, albeit strict and with a strong sense of duty.

They paused outside the cell, where the noise of tears could be heard. "I trust you have no intention of engineering a prison break?" Lahar dryly asked him. Pierce wasn't sure if that was a joke or the man actually suspected him of conspiring with the enemy. "None whatsoever. I just want some answers," he confirmed. With that acknowledgement, Lahar gestured to the two guards on the door, who promptly unlocked the door, and, flanking the Phoenix, lead him inside.

"You!" Only the guards' reflexes prevented Cobra from getting Pierce in a chokehold. He forced himself to remain composed, looking down at the dark wizard sobbing in a corner. "Why did you take her . . how could you take her . . . YOU TOOK HER FROM ME!"

At this, Pierce couldn't deny it any longer. Cobra cared, deeply, about Cubelios. But why? He thought for a second, and decided that he would need to put Cobra's mind at ease before he could have any conversation with him. "The Magic Council will not arrest animals. It would be too embarrassing. In a situation like yours, the only possible recourse is to put down the animal in question,"

Cobra abruptly stopped crying. "What?!"

"That's why I joined the Coalition. As the only Beast Tamer mage in all five guilds, I am uniquely qualified to rehabilitate the former animal companions of dark wizards, and therefore Cubelios' only chance for survival after your arrest,"

"So you . . you saved her," Cobra breathed.

In response, Pierce shot him a small smile, Requipped his flute and began to play. The flute's portal opened, and Cubelios emerged, causing the guards to flinch and reach for their weapons, only to pause when they saw the snake, rather than attacking, contentedly curl up with Cobra.

"What are you doing?" Lahar demanded from outside the cell.

"Giving them a chance to say goodbye," Pierce tossed the phrase over his shoulder, and Lahar seemed to accept this, because he didn't respond.

"You know, I don't get it," he spoke, once it looked like they had caught up. "You're a dark wizard, how can you care so much about something else? I thought that your lot were strictly opposed to that kind of thing,"

"She's the only one who was always there for me . . who always supported and loved me, no matter what happened," Cobra quietly replied, and Pierce raised his eyebrows in bemusement, suddenly thinking of the relationship between himself and Raya. "I see," he nodded, accepting this.

"Ahem," Lahar called. "We are about to move out. You ought to wrap this up,"

"Will you visit?" Cobra suddenly asked, and Pierce nodded. "Of course. She may have to stay with me, at least for the time being, but I don't want to keep you two apart more than necessary,"

"Cubelios . . I'm sorry, but you have to stay with this Pierce guy for a while. We've both done bad things, and we both have to atone for them," Cobra gently told his snake, who almost seemed to nod in understanding. "Don't worry. I'll see you again soon, okay?"

Cubelios nuzzled her friend's cheek one more time, and her eye swivelled to Pierce, who rapidly played the incantation to return her to the flute.

"Hey. Before you leave?" the man spoke, and Pierce looked back at him. "Yeah?"

"That little girl, in your guild. What's her name?"

As far as Pierce knew, Cobra had never met Tyria, and she was hardly little, so there was only one person he could be talking about. "Grace. Grace Hystia,"

Cobra raised his eyebrows. "I see,"

Pierce shrugged and stepped backwards, about to turn and leave. "See you next month, Cobra,"

"Erik," The Tamer paused, looking back over his shoulder. "Pardon?"

"My name. It's Erik," the tanned man admitted.

Pierce smiled. "Gotcha. See you soon, Erik,"

~P's E~

By the next day, the team had returned home. The Garuda was docked behind the guild hall once again, and everything was back to normal.

"So, did I miss anything?" Pierce asked Sarah on the bar, who was shuffling through the morning mail. "Not really. No new jobs came in for you, if that's what you mean,"

Pierce nodded. Tyria had gone home to fine-tune her new Mark III spell in privacy, and Sarph had already rushed off on another job. Boomer and Grace were getting a metaphorical slap on the wrist from Master Feng, and Artorias . . he actually didn't know where Artorias had gone. The young S-Class had run off as soon as they docked the Garuda.

"By the way, I think you'll be interested in this," Sarah produced a rolled-up magazine and handed it to Pierce, who promptly opened it up. It was the latest edition of Sorcerer Weekly, released only that morning, and the cover photo was a group shot of the entire Coalition . . with himself and Natsu Dragneel standing back to back in the foreground and grinning at the camera. The wizards of their respective teams, with Wendy added to Natsu's side, were gathered on either side of them, while the Lamia Scale and Blue Pegasus wizards were off in the background. "Okay, I _know_ I never posed for this," the Tamer raised a confused eyebrow.

"It's probably illusion photography. Sorcerer Weekly has top illusion wizards that can whip up any image they want, regardless of whether the event depicted actually happened," Sarah explained, and Pierce nodded. That made sense. He promptly opened the magazine, and scanned the front page. "A feature-length article on the brave efforts of the wizards of the Coalition to defeat the Oracion Seis?" he blinked. "How did they get this together so quickly? That was just two days ago!"

"You know what they say about hot news," the barmaid shrugged. "Reporters are probably going to come and interview you in the near future, you know,"

Pierce nodded, accepting the inevitability of an interview, and his friend returned to sorting the mail.

"Bill for damages, bill for damages, bill for damages - Master's gonna love that," Sarah sighed, shuffling several identical-looking yellow letters out of the pile, before pausing as she picked a royal crimson envelope out of the pile. "Oh, here's something. It's for . . Hare?" she blinked, reading the flowing, cursive script that addressed the latter to Hare Kransúx, Phoenix's Eye Wizarding Guild, Magnolia.

Pierce blinked. "Hare gets mail?"

"Not before now she hasn't," Sarah shrugged, before turning in the direction where Hare was mooning over Totomaru. "Hey, Hare? You have mail!"

The black-haired Speed wizard raised an eyebrow and blurred over to the bar, snatching the red envelope out of Sarah's hand. She and Pierce watched as Hare gave the envelope a cursory glance, before her hands blurred around it. Within seconds, all that was left of the envelope was a shower of red-and-white confetti.

"Do you own a shredder?" Hare asked, and Sarah blinked. "No . . but after that I don't see why we need one!" she protested. "That could have been important!"

Hare's eyes widened for a second, before settling back into her customary disdainful expression. "Not to me," With that, Hare sped out of the guild hall.

"What was that about?" Sarah blinked as Pierce bent down and scooped up some of the shredded remains of the letter. None of it made any sense out of context; 'parture, the disagree', 'she fears that if', 'to. I feel that there' and the Tamer soon realised the task of piecing the letter together was futile.

"Hey, look at this," Sarah picked one of the fragments out of the pile, holding it up for Pierce to see; 'we need you'.

"Huh. Apparently, Hare doesn't feel that way," he commented.

"I guess there's nothing we can really do," Sarah helplessly shrugged.

"Yeah," Pierce nodded, gazing over at the doors. "But I get the feeling there's more to her than she lets on,"

~P's AN~

 **WARNING: M-rated stuff from this point onwards.**

~P's AN~

Phoenix's Eye. Once upon a time it had been a beacon of light and goodwill, a place where all could go and feel welcome.

In an admittedly perverse way, Pierce Kynigós was just a little glad that things had changed since King Faust had outlawed all legal guilds. Things were bad . . maybe even hopeless . . . but he had to admit that this lifestyle suited him better.

Metal clinked against metal as he cleaned his rifle with his prosthetic steel arm, covered as it was by his khaki jacket. He flexed the sharpened, claw-like fingers of his replacement left arm, testing their mobility, before wrapping them around the cloth again and continuing to run it down the barrel. He was careful not to clean it too hard, though - otherwise he might accidentally erase some of the nicks he had carved into the barrel.

Nicking the barrel was a tradition passed down from his father, Jarod Kynigós, who had been arguably the greatest hunter in Edolas' history. While his father had been relatively new at hunting, he had developed a custom; every time he killed a monster, he carved a nick into the barrel of his rifle in commemoration of the hunt. Around middle-age, he had stopped, mostly because he had run out of room on the barrel. However, Pierce had always been impressed by the story, and had adopted the tradition as his own when his father taught him how to hunt. His barrel was nicked one-third of the way down by now, and he dreamed of the day when he ran out of room. Because, on that day, he could finally say that he'd lived up to the legacy left behind by his father.

"Cleaning that gun again? I'd have thought you'd be proud of a little blood," a voice interrupted him, and Pierce looked up with a smile, resting the weapon on the table as he stood and turned to embrace his girlfriend, who leant into their embrace with a passionate kiss. "Good to see you're back, you little minx," he smiled.

The girl, who had bright red hair and mischievous yellow eyes, giggled, resting a hand on his broad, muscular shoulder. "Oh, Pierce. You know I'd never leave you," she chuckled.

"No, Raya. I know you wouldn't," Suddenly, he scooped his girlfriend up and deposited her roughly on the bench next to him, before sitting back down and grinning as she rested her head on his shoulder. "Ah, the three loves of my life. My guild, my girl and my gun,"

"Aww, that's adorable," someone else crooned, and Pierce looked up to see Hare Lusamive cooing at them. "I wish me and Totomaru had that kind of easy contentment,"

"Hmph. I think they should get a room," said a dark-skinned girl with blue hair that hung loose and black combat gear, with a comically oversized bazooka leaning against the bar next to her. Tyria Blackburn took a swig from the glass of beer on the bar next to her as she tutted. "I mean, we all know they've christened every bed in this place, but obviously it's not enough,"

"I mean, I love him and all, and he loves me too, but he's just so clingy," Hare pined, taking no notice of the sulky girl next to her. "What do you think, Fleur?"

The mute, silver-haired woman raised her eyebrows at her best friend, and shrugged, pursing her lips, sending her billowy green frock rippling around her body.

"You're right. He's a sweet guy, and I shouldn't complain," Hare nodded. "I just wish he'd stop going on about me and Boomer. We're just friends, there's nothing between us," she sighed, resting her chin in her hands.

"Did someone say Boomer?!" Suddenly a pudgy teenager in a dazzling white suit embedded with rhinestones in complicated patterns, and wearing a set of spiky triangular sunglasses that matched his black hair, wielding a purple electric guitar, leapt out of nowhere and landed on the table Pierce and Raya were seated at. "Cause I'm here and ready to drop the BOOM!"

"Oh no you don't!" Suddenly a blur of white silk knocked him off the table and pinned him to the floor. "Last time you played anything on that guitar, the guards found us in ten seconds flat! You should consider yourself lucky that I don't smash that guitar into a bajillion pieces!" Eve Buzzcaller shrieked, and slapped Boomer in the face.

At the end of the long table, a man with short blond hair and glasses wearing a black suit and a white tie scribbled into his notebook. "The angle of your jump was off by two degrees, Eve. You should have corrected to ensure maximum impact," Sarph Doran droned. "Additionally, you ought to apply more pressure with your feet and use your knees to lock his legs into po -"

"Boring!" Sarph suddenly ducked as a massive mallet swung where his head had been a second ago, and the wielder of the mallet, a redhead with a wild grin, red straps with golden highlights that left his arms and chest bare, and white breeches cackled. "Come on, tightarse!" Artorias Jaughter smirked. "No one cares about all those number-y things!"

"On the contrary, numbers and mathematics are quintessential to our continued survival, especially considering the situation the guild is currently in," Sarph monotonously droned, adjusting his glasses.

"As much as I hate to say it, Sarph has a point," Blanca Windan shrugged from the next table over. "I mean, it's not like our guild hall got destroyed, along with half of our members, including the Power Twins and Master," she sarcastically commented. The thirty or so other members of the guild who were seated at the table exchanged glances of various stages of depression.

"Aww, don't talk like that. Smile, be happy. We're safe on the Garuda, and we can be up in the air in two minutes," Hare shrugged, gesturing around them, to the two long tables and makeshift bar that had been set up on the deck of the Phoenix's Eye airship, which had landed in a valley in the middle of a mountain range. Above them, the massive canopy of the vehicle billowed with hot air.

"What about the Royal Army's legions?" Tyria asked with an irritated look.

Pierce snorted at her question, and, holding up the barrel of his rifle, tapped a dozen of the more recent nicks on the barrel in rapid succession with his flesh hand. "Those all belong to legions whose brains I've blown out," he pointed out with a smirk. "We ain't got nothing to fear from them,"

"See? We're fine. And once Totomaru gets back with the supplies, we'll be good for another couple of weeks," Raya helpfully put forward.

"He's coming right now, actually," Boomer, who had been released from Eve's clutches, looked up the pass. "In a bit of a hurry, too - oh! He must have bought ice cream and wants to get it to the freezer before it melts!"

"What?" Tyria blinked, standing up and joining Boomer on the edge of the ship's railing. She peered up the passage, and saw Totomaru, clutching at a couple of bags and frantically running towards them, waving his arms in the air. "He looks panicked," she observed, before realisation struck. "Get this thing in the air! Now!" she commanded, and Eve frantically ran for the tiller.

Just as Tyria had suspected, a mob of Royal Soldiers appeared at the pass, chasing after Totomaru. "Everyone! Battle stations!" she commanded, and the cry went around. Pierce stood and raised his gun, primed and ready to fire. Tyria snatched up her bazooka, and Fleur produced a sword, though she looked unhappy with it. Raya smiled and pulled a small metal rod out of her pocket, which, with the press of a button, flared into a sword made of pure fire. Hare tapped her heels together, activating the Speed enchantments in her boots. Artorias looked to be on the verge of laughing as he strapped on a pair of gloves, which glowed red with magic. Sarph irritatedly pulled a pencil out of his pocket and held it between his fingers in the most intimidating way possible - not that that was saying much.

Totomaru finally came within earshot, and shouted "Run! Take o - urk!" The man suddenly froze mid-run, as a thin spray of blood erupted from his chest. He collapsed to the ground, dead before he hit the floor and blood leaking out of the bullet wound in his back.

Hare gasped, before gritting her teeth. "They're gonna pay for that," she growled.

"We have lift-off!" Eve shouted, grasping the tiller as the Garuda rose, slowly making its way towards the safety of the sky.

But it was not to be. One of the soldiers stopped and raised some kind of weapon, which he fired. A moment later, the projectile hit the gasbag, and immediately punched through it, letting the hot air out. The Garuda immediately fell back to the ground, the impact shaking all on board.

"Everyone, off the deck!" Tyria commanded, realising that, without air, the balloon canopy would deflate and trap them all beneath it, making the wizards easy pickings for the Royal Guard.

"Come on, love!" Pierce declared, grabbing Raya's wrist and pulling her with him as he made for the edge of the deck and jumped off, his khaki coat billowing in the wind as they did. Everyone rapidly followed suit, and all forty of the surviving Phoenix's Eye wizards regrouped at the base of the trail.

"We'll make our stand here!" Tyria declared, rattling her bazooka menacingly. "Come on, everyone! We can win this!"

"Are you sure? Because that's an awful lot of soldiers," Hare gulped, shrinking at the sight of what had to be at least a couple of hundred of guards charging at them.

"I don't care if it's a thousand!" the bazooka-wielding wizard snapped, raising her weapon and firing up the mountain. A moment later, the projectile landed and exploded against the front line of the soldiers' ranks, throwing most of them back. "They all blow up just the same,"

There was suddenly a mighty roar, and the hulking form of a legion erupted from the mountainside, halting at the apex of its climb, before bearing down towards the group of survivors.

"Boomer! Stop that thing!" Eve snapped, and Boomer grinned. "You had me at 'love', baby," he grinned, raising his guitar and leaving Eve to wonder when she had said that word. But it was of no consequence, as Boomer began rapidly playing the magical instrument - and a massive wave of sound flew forth, echoing through the air, and its sheer intensity halted the beast in its flight.

And that was all Pierce needed, leaping onto a nearby rock and taking a second to aim. He fired, and the bullet streaked through the air, before piercing the monster's threat. With a strangled cry, the legion collapsed, falling towards the mountainside. "That's why they call me Deadeye Pierce!" the hunter fist-pumped with his metal arm as the beast crashed to the ground . . . giving the Phoenix's Eye wizards a good view of what - or who - was on its back.

Another squadron of soldiers scrambled to get down and join the main group, but that was inconsequential compared to the stormy figure clad in armoured black underwear, with matching gauntlets and greaves. Blood-red hair glistened in the sunlight as she rose and stood on the dead legion's head, raising her Ten Commandments Spear menacingly.

"Oh no," half of the wizards whispered at once. "It's Erza Knightwalker," Tyria breathed in horror.

"I'm mounting your head on my wall, you sick bitch!" Pierce shouted, aiming and firing once more. The bullet shot true, aiming to shred through the woman's heart - but in a flash of steel, her spear was suddenly there, deflecting the bullet.

"Pierce has the right idea!" Tyria shouted, raising her bazooka. "Fire!" she declared, launching an explosive payload at the First Army Captain.

With a savage swipe, Knightwalker drove the missile downwards and pole-vaulted over or as it hit the body of her dead legion and detonated, the blast throwing her into the air, and she used it to cover the distance between her and the Phoenixes.

Tyria barely had time to scream before the spear pierced her throat, killing her instantly. She fell to the ground as Knightwalker landed and stood over her dead body, a cruel smile on her face. "All of you have been charged with high treason against the King and illegal use of magic. The punishment is death. Explosion!" With that, her spear changed forms, and she stabbed at another guildsman. The spear tip suddenly exploded, throwing the closely packed group around in every direction. "Mel Force!" she declared, swinging it in a circle as it changed again, and sending many of the wizards still standing toppling to the ground. "Blue Crimson!" Her spear suddenly split in half, and, with devastating ease, Knightwalker began stabbing the downed wizards, each thrust a fatal blow.

"No!" Pierce shrieked, firing again, before sliding down the boulder and running towards the group.

But Artorias was on his feet. "Come at me!" he commanded, and blood suddenly shot out of his dead guildsmates' bodies and swarmed Knightwalker - before it all suddenly splattered to the ground in a puddle, as Knightwalker changed her spear again. "Rune Save!"

"Oh no," was as far as Artorias got before the captain bisected him with a clean swipe from the Ten Commandments. The two halves of the Blood wizard's body fell apart and bled out on the floor.

"No!" Pierce shouted, shooting bullet after bullet at Knightwalker as he charged, desperate to get to her before she could lay a hand on Raya. But the spear was an impenetrable wall, every shot that should have slid between her ribcage and stopped her heart deflected by it.

And then Boomer was there, waves of sound emanating from his guitar that buffeted Knightwalker and held her back. "Filthy . . little . . worm!" she spoke through gritted teeth, struggling against the sound.

"Now, Pierce!" Boomer shouted, and Pierce fired again, knowing that he couldn't miss with Erza immobilised like that.

"Cannon!" the woman suddenly declared, and her spear changed again. She pivoted on her heel, letting the waves of sound accelerate her, and as she did, fired a blast of magic energy that smashed straight into Boomer, obliterating his guitar, burning through his suit and leaving an instantly-cauterised hole in his chest as it threw him backwards. Without pausing for a second, Knightwalker completed her turn and held the spear up, allowing the bullet to bounce off its edge, before launching another blast of magic at Pierce. He frantically dodged, and it singed his blonde spikes as it passed.

Then, Sarph and Fleur appeared on either side of Knightwalker and attacked simultaneously, flowers blooming around her feet and locking them in place as a swarm of flying pencils attacked from every angle. Sarph smiled. "I have calculated the vectors of my pencils to target pressure points that your rather insufficient armour leaves exposed, which will immobilise -" Sarph suddenly stopped talking, on account of having a spear tip lodged in his throat. Knightwalker tched. "You talk too much," before turning to Fleur. "And you don't talk enough," she mused. "Ironic, isn't it?" she shrugged before remorselessly stabbing the noblewoman in the heart.

Knightwalker turned to the last half a dozen wizards in the group, most of which had fallen to their knees and were begging for mercy. "Please, I-I surrender," Hare whimpered, staring up at the Angel of Death in fear,

"Good," And, with a clean swipe, Knightwalker cut Hare's head off, which fell to the ground and rolled to her feet, lifeless eyes staring up at her.

While the other wizards fell to the ground, accepting their fate, Raya stood, cold fury emanating from her body. "She. Surrendered," she growled, gripping her flaming sword with white knuckles.

"I know. I like it when they do that. It makes them easier to kill," Knightwalker shrugged, raising her spear. "I don't suppose you'd do me the same courtesy?"

"Fat chance," Raya growled, before looking past the woman's shoulder. A small smile appeared.

And then an iron fist smashed into the back of her head. Knightwalker stumbled forwards, and suddenly felt cold metal against her back. But before Pierce could fire, she span and grabbed the barrel with her hand, forcing it away from her body. "Pathetic wizards," she hissed, effortlessly dodging a thrust from Raya's sword, knocking the rifle out of Pierce's hands with her spear, before reversing its direction and stabbing Raya in the chest.

Raya's eyes went wide, looking at the weapon buried in her body. "Pierce," she softly whispered, before slumping forwards, held upright because Knightwalker had not pulled the weapon out of her body.

Pierce froze, taking in the sight of his girlfriend's dead body. "You . . MONSTER!" he shouted, forgetting his gun and savagely attacking Knightwalker.

Until the royal Captain used Raya's body like a bludgeon to knock him aside. Pierce fell to the ground, bringing his arms up to protect himself, and Knightwalker coldly smiled as her spear changed form. "Explosion,"

Raya's corpse was blown into pieces, and the blast threw Pierce backwards, smashing him into the hull of the Garuda. He fell to the ground, blood trickling from a gash on his forehead, and lay limp.

Knightwalker regarded him for a second, and nodded curtly. "Alright, we're done," she commanded her troops, who had mostly stood by and watched. "Let's get out of here,"

~P's E~

Several hours later, Pierce Kynigós slowly came to. He absent-mindedly rubbed the blood out of his eyes as he wondered why he had decided to sleep in such an uncomfortable spot, while still wearing his prosthetic and bleeding, no less, when he saw the dead bodies of his guildmates and it all came rushing back.

He clenched his fists and picked up his gun from where it had fallen. "Knightwalker, you are fucking dead," he growled, looking down at his rifle. She had taken his guild, and she had taken his girl. She'd left him with nothing but his gun . . so he'd use it. Then and there he decided; no more notching his barrel for killing beasts. From this day onwards, there would be a notch for every Royal Guard he put a bullet in . . and a _special_ place on his trophy rack for Erza Knightwalker's head.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **So . . that was probably the darkest thing Phoenix's Eye canon will ever see. (Which, it upsets me to say, yes, this is canon.) Apologies for the omission of Grace; in Edolas, she was never abducted to be experimented on because Edo-Brain was too busy running for his life to do experiments. Therefore, she never joined Phoenix's Eye and is probably off living an unremarkable life in some village somewhere. (Plus . . I just didn't have the heart to make the innocent little girl part of the bloodbath.). Also, this event should explain why there's no Phoenix's Eye equivalent character of Lisanna.**

 **Also, based on the Porlyusica/Grandeeney situation, I reasoned that the Edolas counterpart to Raya would be human, as, like dragons, phoenixes do not exist in Edolas outside of legend. (And of course she and Pierce were in love. Edo-Tyria isn't Edo-Pierce's type.) On a somewhat related note, Pierce Blastreyne and Pierce Kynigós are definitely gonna come to blows when they meet.**

 **On a more lighthearted note, two major pieces of information; firstly, after extensive trial and error with graphic design, I managed to draw a passable replica of the Phoenix's Eye Guild Mark and put it up as the story's new cover image! And, since cover images on FFN are low-resolution, you readers can all get the general idea without having to deal with my poor artistry skills. Double whammy! ^^**

 **Secondly, I have also started a new 'Filler Episodes' story of one- and two-shots canon to TGND. So go check that out!**

 **This entire chapter has really been mostly foreshadowing for future arcs. Which is okay, because I'm the author and I say so. Hope you enjoyed (and won't have too many nightmares about Knightwalker - Knightmares, maybe?), peace . .**


	34. Into The Great Beyond

Chapter 34: Into The Great Beyond

It was December 2, X784. Pierce looked up at the massive building that served as the wizarding prison run by the Magic Council. He breathed in and out, before continuing to walk to the entrance.

Before long, he was standing in the reception. "Hello," he greeted one of the receptionists. "I'm here to visit one of the prisoners,"

"Got an appointment?" If the clerk, one of many seated behind a large desk, was at all bothered by working on a daily basis in the same building as hundreds, if not thousands, of dark wizards, most of which were at least somewhat insane, she failed to show it, treating the Phoenix with as much interest as she would a piece of gum on the bottom of her shoe.

"Yes. I called Lahar, and he told me that he made all the necessary arrangements," Pierce explained.

"Name?" The clerk was lazily fiddling with her lacrima.

"Pierce Blastreyne, here to see Erik, alias Cobra,"

"Ooooh," the clerk dispassionately sighed. "That's you, is it?"

Pierce raised an eyebrow as a guard approached behind him, and the clerk monotonously explained, "This guard will take you to the meeting room,"

"Good, thank you," the Tamer nodded, letting the guard lead him away.

The guard was slightly more friendly than the clerk, and seemed interested in making conversation as they walked. "So, what brings you to visit this scumbag? Is he an estranged cousin or something?"

Pierce shrugged. "Not quite. I'm not really even visiting him. I'm just the messenger,"

The guard paused outside a door, and gestured to it. "Alright, whatever. Well, enjoy. Shout if there's a problem," he shrugged, already bored with the conversation.

Pierce nodded and stepped inside.

Cobra - _Erik_ , the boy corrected himself - was seated at a chair in the middle of the room. Vengestone cuffs were around his wrists to prevent him from using magic, though only one half was fastened around his left wrist. Pierce was on good terms with Lahar, a high-ranking Council official, and he had pulled a few strings for Pierce's visits with Erik as a favour.

Erik looked up as Pierce entered, his face lighting up. "You came,"

"Sure I did," the Tamer smiled back at him. "Wouldn't want to keep you apart from your girlfriend," he joked, Requipping his flute and playing the tune to summon Cubelios.

The snake hissed with delight, leaping at Erik and knocking him out of his chair. The Poison wizard hugged her back, and Pierce watched as the two spent a few moments reacquainting themselves with each other. Eventually, they settled down, Erik swamped in Cubelios' coils, and he turned his attention back to Pierce. "How's she been coping?"

"Pretty well. Guild life suits her," Pierce reassured him.

"Glad to hear it," Erik smiled. "Maybe I should give it a try, if I ever get out of here," he ruefully looked around at the walls enclosing him.

"Don't talk like that. They can't keep you in here forever," the Tamer pointed out. "Good behaviour, a few good words from Lahar and us in Phoenix's Eye, I'm sure we could get you on parole or probation or something in a few years,"

"You'd do that for me?" Erik raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"Well, that depends. Could you do it? Stick to the straight and narrow?" Pierce challenged, and the older boy chuckled a humourless laugh. "To be honest, I never really cared about all that black magic crap to begin with. None of the Och did - except Brain and maybe Mylene. The rest of us? We worked for Brain because he got us out of the Tower of Heaven. He gave us magic and convinced us that the whole world was no better than the tower, and under him we could get our own back,"

Pierce raised an eyebrow. He hadn't heard any of this before.

"I believed him too, we all did. I thought the whole world was so full of evil that good was just a fantasy, if that," Erik admitted. "I still did, until meeting you,"

"I'm flattered," the Tamer chuckled.

The next few moments passed in silence, and, admittedly, Pierce felt more than a little like a third wheel, but knew he wasn't allowed to leave.

Eventually, the visiting hour was up, and a guard stepped inside to inform them it was time to go.

"Alright, I'm ready," Erik nodded, giving Cubelios one more hug, before letting go. "Be good, girl," The snake seemed to nod, even as Pierce returned her to the flute.

"You're coming again next month, right?" the man asked.

"Sure," Pierce grinned. "See you then,"

~P's E~

Exactly nine days later, snow was coating Magnolia's streets and roofs, Totomaru's services had suddenly come into high demand for the clearing of snowdrifts, Master Feng had cast an enchantment over the Garuda to prevent it from being snowed into unusability, and Eve was revelling in the wonderful conditions for Snow Magic.

And Pierce was uncomfortably aware that Christmas was only two weeks away. And Feng did always hold a not-entirely-random Kris-Kringle setup within the guild (often with tailored choices to make sure that everyone got a good partner).

However, it was also considered to be an unspoken requirement that people at least got their own presents for everyone in their team, as well as anyone else they were close with. So, of course, Pierce could hardly go without giving gifts to the other members of 'Team Pierce' . . with the possible exception of Hare, who took great delight in refusing to give any gifts whatsoever. Master had learnt to assign her to Faraday for Kris-Kringle, who was rarely at the guild for Christmas and would not miss the absence of a present, and vice versa.

No, he should still give Hare something. Just to be polite.

Most of his gifts had been taken care of; a Reality-grey dragon soft toy for Grace - after the Oracion Och incident, her midnight visits to his bed had become less frequent, and Pierce hoped that a soft toy to hug would stop them entirely - a vintage vinyl record for Boomer, a boxed set of fantasy novels for Artorias (between working with Tyria to defeat Lorus and the Oracion Och incident, he was practically an honorary member of the team), a litre of armour/weapon polish for Sarph, food-scented candles for Kit, and a new leather handgrip for Hare to put on her giant saucepan. She'd been complaining - as loudly and obnoxiously as possible - about the handle's cold metal and sharp edges, which of course didn't stop her from gleefully bashing anything and everything with it at the slightest excuse.

(On an unrelated note, Pierce had recently become rather adept at ducking.)

He just needed a gift for Tyria.

Tyria . . Pierce liked to think he had good control over his emotions (except when his father was brought up, and he was working on that), and did his utmost to remain professional while working with Tyria. He'd done his best to bury his attraction towards her so that he wouldn't risk jeopardising their friendship . . but he couldn't deny his feelings. So, if nothing else, he wanted to make sure he got a really good present for his foreign friend.

That was why he was currently riding the train to Hargeon. As not only a port, but the geographically closest port in Fiore to Electria, Tyria's homeland, it offered a wide selection of foreign goods and he was hopeful that he could find something meaningful from Electria to gift her.

Incidentally, Grace was off training with Gajeel and Wendy - who had joined the impromptu 'classes' they hosted after joining Fairy Tail - so he was confident that she would be alright without him.

However, a few hours later, when he and Kit - who had slept through the entire journey - arrived in town, he was dismayed to discover that none of the shopkeepers he could find had any Electrian memorabilia.

"Sorry, sonny," one of the traders he had met at the port market had apologetically shrugged. "But Electria is a country in the middle of civil war, being held by hostile occupying forces from Alvarez. You'd have to be crazy to try to sail or trade anything there,"

"I see," Pierce nodded, turning and leaving in disappointment. His thoughts briefly turned to an - _"Pssst!"_

He paused, cocking his head and listening, looking around. It was almost as though - "Psst! You!"

That noise was definitely coming from a nearby alleyway. Pierce unconsciously Requipped his flute and carefully eyed the alleyway, slowly advancing on it. Slowly, he made out a shadowy figure with a dark cloak eyeing him. "You wanna buy stuff from Electria?" it spoke in a wheezy, nasally voice.

"Oh, a creepy man in an alley. How promising," Kit snorted, and Pierce agreed, immediately recognising the man, or at least his ilk. "You're a smuggler," he deadpanned.

"Yeah? So?"

Pierce tapped the white guild emblem on his blue shift with the hand that bore his Phoenix's Eye guild mark, adjusting the red coat he had added to his attire for winter to ensure it was visible. "I'm a guild wizard. I take people like you down for a living,"

"Yeah, we - wait, whaddya mean, _I_? I help!" Kit hotly protested.

"Maybe, but you're not on job and sound like you need my services," the smuggler offered with a grin.

"No thanks," Pierce tched, making to move on. "And yeah, you do help. You make excellent comic relief," he commented to Kit, who huffed good-naturedly.

"You sure? 'Cause you looking pretty desperate before,"

"True, but Tyria would never accept a gift I got for her via criminal methods," Pierce huffed, striding away.

Unfortunately, the smuggler followed. "Oh, Tyria? She your girlfriend? Girlfriends don't like it when they don't get good presents," he tantalisingly pointed out.

"I'm walking away now! And if you keep following us, I'll drag your scrawny ass to the Rune Knights!" Pierce shouted over his shoulder, turning away and leaving.

The smuggler knew he was beat, and scurried back to the alley. As he went, he thought to himself. "Tyria. Why that name sound familiar?"

Suddenly, he got it. Back in Electria, there'd been a poster. WANTED: TYRIA ZECHTIAN. With a hefty cash reward for her captured alive and returned to Alvarez.

"Maybe is same Tyria, maybe is not. Maybe me and boys will follow that guy and see for ourselves," the smuggler cackled, scurrying away.

~P's E~

Pierce returned to Magnolia fruitless. "No luck?" Boomer sympathetically asked, having been aware of his plans for the day.

"Nada," Pierce shrugged.

"That's a shame," Boomer commented.

"Hey, what's Astro doing for Christmas?" Pierce asked, a sudden idea hitting him. The paranoid, reclusive inventor of Phoenix's Eye was never seen for the Christmas celebrations, and as Boomer was the only member of the guild he was willing to be in the same room as, he was the generally accepted authority on the activities of the Creation's Spark wizard.

"Knowing him, building an army of robot reindeer," Boomer shrugged, patting down his black jumper.

"Yeah, probably," Pierce agreed. "Do you think he might have an idea for what I can get Tyria?"

Boomer mulled this over. "Maybe. Electria is renowned as being foremost in the world in regards to technology, so someone like Astro's bound to know something about what's hot there,"

"Can we go ask him?" Pierce suggested.

"Well, we should probably check where Tyria is first," Boomer suggested, but Sarah, who had been listening in as she served Russell, Fernando, Totomaru and Wesley, an older man who practised Ball magic, drinks, called over; "She's with Ariel, Eve, Fleur and Blanca at the Nest! They're having a slumber party tonight!"

"Looks like we're in the clear," Pierce grinned.

"Great. I'll get the Sonic Boom. Meet you out back!"

~P's E~

Astro's bunker, a massive green cylinder sunk into the ground and made entirely of reinforced metal, was a relic abandoned after the seventh-century guild wars ended. Astro had commandeered it years ago and used it as a place to hide from the world when, in his old age, his paranoia caused him to grow increasingly convinced that everybody was trying to take advantage of his genius for their own ends.

"The only reason he deals with me is because I'm 'honest about it'," Boomer chuckled with finger-quotes as they approached the bunker in his magic-mobile.

"How's that?" Pierce asked.

"We first met when I wanted him to build the Sonic Boom for me. I was . . determined, back then. No time for small talk, no time for politeness. I just knocked on his door and demanded he build me a superweapon,"

"And he agreed?" the Tamer incredulously asked.

"Yeah. Astro doesn't mind building things for people. His paranoia just makes him go nuts when people try to butter him up, make conversation. He doesn't actually mind if people take advantage of him, he just wants too be aware of it," Boomer explained, pulling the Sonic Boom to a halt outside the doors. He flipped a few switches, and rock music emanated from the speakers. Pierce's eardrums pounded, but Boomer revelled in the noise - at least until the doors hissed and slid open, at which point he switched it off.

"Hello," a synthesised-sounding voice greeted them. Pierce started as he saw a figure moving in the shadows. "The hell? Is that Astro?" he asked, before the figure was revealed as a human-shaped machine with white metal for skin and glowing green orbs in place of eyes, wearing a blue dress and a blonde wig. It moved with a shambling, jerking gait, seeming to twitch in odd ways, and seemed like some sort of mechanical mockery of a Disney Princess.

"No. _That_ is Tinka," the Sound wizard casually nodded to the robot as she led them inside, and Pierce noted with surprise that 'Tinka' was actually some sort of metal puppet, suspended from the roof via near-invisible string. Looking up, he could faintly make out some kind of bracket on the ceiling that seemed to control 'her' actions. "It's funny the things that inventors like Astro will do when they get lonely, but are too paranoid to find someone to live with them," he absently commented.

"That's just creepy," Pierce shivered, eyeing the puppet carefully as it led them inside.

"So, what have you come for today?" Tinka asked, swivelling to face them, and Boomer folded his arms. "We've been through this before, Astro! I'm not talking to your robot girlfriend!"

"Fine," the more familiar voice echoed through the base via loudspeakers as Tinka pouted, before being led away. "You know the whole reason I built her was so that she could be polite and I wouldn't have to,"

"To say nothing of your fetish for metal," Boomer retorted, apparently unbothered by the fact that he was talking to a loudspeaker. "Anyway. Pierce here wants to get a Christmas present for Tyria from her homeland, but none of the traders are willing to go to Electria because it's at war. Have you got anything?"

"Let me think," Astro mused, and the intercom cut out.

A moment later, a hatch opened in the side of the room, and a flock of robotic ducks with glowing red eyes and metal feathers emerged, marching into the centre of the room and presenting themselves to the boys.

"That is also creepy," Pierce commented.

"Would you change your mind if you knew they could explode?"

"No!"

"Fine," Astro huffed via intercom, and the ducks trotted away. "How about this?"

The blond Tamer actually flinched as a growling robotic dog emerged from the shadows and barked, a horrendous metallic noise.

"You do realise that the goal here is to get Tyria something nice, right?" Pierce queried.

There was a sudden whirring, and a shower of frozen cubes fell down from the ceiling, pelting the visitors. Boomer looked around in shock, and as Astro cackled, Pierce protested. "Hey! I said nice, not ice!"

"Oh, sorry. I must be going a bit deaf," the inventor sniggered. "But seriously now, how's this?"

Pierce braced himself, fully expecting another nasty surprise, but, instead, a flicker of small, bronze specks emerged from the corners. It took him a minute to process wang he was seeing, but, as the objects swirled around him, the boy figured it out. "Bugs," he whispered reverentially.

Five of the tiny bronze ladybugs separated from the swarm and chattered at him, hovering nearby. "It's perfect," he whispered.

"Oh, you think so? I'm so glad," Astro nodded - not that it could be seen -, sounding sincere, and the five bugs curled up into small metal balls that fell to the ground at Pierce's feet, as the rest vanished. "Now get out!" he snapped in a sudden change of tone.

Boomer shrugged. "I think that's as good as we'll get,"

"Works for me," Pierce admitted, scooping up the dormant metal bugs and putting them in a jacket pocket, turning, and exiting the creepy bunker as rapidly as he could without making it look like he was running.

"Alright. Let's head back to town," his teammate nodded.

~P's E~

In the Nest, as the sun set outside the window, Tyria, Eve, Fleur, Ariel and Blanca were all gathered in Ariel's room, painted blue with wave designs on the walls and several matching water-themed cushions, with shelves that held books and keepsakes, and a bed with a navy blue sheet. "Slumber party!" Tyria and Ariel squealed, with Eve weakly joining in. Fleur, being mute, nodded empathetically.

"I still think we should have done it in my room. I'm best at hosting slumber parties," Blanca sulked.

By now, Tyria had learnt how to deal with her. "Well, now, you also get to be best at attending one hosted by someone else," she reasoned, and the Plastic wizard's face lit up. "Oh yeah," She suddenly glared at Tyria, Fleur and Eve. "I'm the best at attending a slumber party, so none of you are allowed to be better than me! Got it?"

"Sure," the Electrian indulgently nodded.

"So," the water witch produced a tray of drinks from seemingly nowhere. "I brought lemonade?"

Blanca immediately grabbed one of the glasses and took a sip - and her face contorted. "This isn't cold enough!"

"I-I can fix that," Eve offered, sending a flurry of Snow magic around the lemonade, which immediately frosted over.

"See? No problem," Ariel grinned at Blanca, who huffed, and the receptionist silently made a mental note not to invite her to the next slumber party.

"So . . this is my first time at a slumber party," Tyria broached the topic, "so I'm not really sure what we do at one," Fleur nodded in agreement. Slumber parties hadn't been a done thing in Phantom Lord.

"Nail painting, gossip, talking about boys . . girl things," Ariel shrugged. "It's not a complicated concept," Blanca added.

"Okay," Tyria nodded. "Well . . Eve. Why don't you tell me more about your Celestial Spirits? The only one I've seen is Polaris,"

"Uh, right, sure," the Celestial wizard nodded, fumbling with her belt and pulling a keyring out. On the ring were four silver keys, as well as one that was made of some kind of cloudy, opaque white crystal. Tyria blinked, eyeing the crystal key, and Fleur raised her eyes in interest. "I thought keys only came in gold and silver? I've never heard of a crystal key before,"

"Oh," Eve flushed with the keyring, grasping the object in question. "It's a family heirloom of sorts," she explained. "I inherited it recently from my grandmother -"

Before she could finish explaining, though, the window exploded and a man smashed into the room, landing expertly on Ariel's bed. "Found her!" he shouted over his shoulder, before a massive plastic fist knocked him backwards. "Oi! I'm best at smashing windows, so only I get to smash windows! Plasticmake Hand!" Blanca shouted, knocking him back through the broken window.

Unfortunately, two more masked figures quickly replaced him, and Eve panicked, acting on reflex. "Open, Gate of the Rose! Venus!" she shrieked, twisting the key in her hand in midair. An intricate, floral, white magic circle appeared in front of her, and, as the Celestial doorbell sounded, a blinding light erupted from it, dazzling Tyria, Fleur and Ariel and knocking Blanca to the floor.

When the dust cleared and the girls' retinas recovered, there was a tall woman with bright pink hair, which had several roses braided into it, standing in the room, wearing nothing but white silk underwear. Venus leered down at the two attackers, who quailed - and were suddenly blown away by a storm of petals.

Fleur's sword had Requipped into her hand, and her silver hair billowed in the wind generated by magic as ornate lettering spelled out 'Petal Blizzard' along the blade of her rapier. She mockingly smiled, silently chuckling, as Venus, unhappy with being pre-empted, landed several blows on the intruders to make up.

"Maybe we should go get help," Ariel suggested, but the Petal wizard shot her a scathing glare.

"Yeah, we can handle this. Assuming we keep the fighting quiet enough not to wake the neighbours," Tyria agreed, before looking to Blanca on the floor, expecting her to declare herself capable of defeating the entire group of attackers. Fortunately, the Plastic wizard was unconscious.

And then the lights in the room went out. Eve squealed, panicking in the darkness, and Venus, hearing her master's distress, turned and picked her up in her arms. "Don't worry, mistress. I'll take care of you," she smiled.

"Ariel? Fleur!" Tyria called, waving her arms out in the darkness. Her hand met something and she grasped it, immediately recognising the feel of the manicured fingernails. "Fleur?" she repeated, and the hand squeezed her fingers in an affirmative response.

A sudden thought struck her, and she pulled Fleur backwards. "Backs to the wall, then nothing will sneak up on us," she declared, taking the two steps backwards that should have brought her against the wall near the door of Ariel's bedroom, but was surprised to find nothing. "Uh . . . Fleur? Where are we?

Suddenly, something wrapped around her ankle, and pulled. The Tech wizard squeaked, and, feeling her friend fall, Fleur immediately strengthened her grip and used her other hand to further redouble it. Unfortunately, this achieved nothing, and she was simply pulled after her.

Tyria was more than a little surprised to emerge into a large cage with a wooden floor and steel bars, with a wizard with black magic circles on his hands on the other side. "We got her!" he crowed, before pausing as Fleur followed out of the shadowy portal and into the cage. "And a ride-along,"

"What the hell do you - argh!" the wizard suddenly screamed as her leg erupted in pain. She stared down and saw a metal cord with stone barbs digging into her flesh around the exposed part of her ankle between her combat pants and her shoes. "The hell?"

Fleur spasmed with a silent shriek as an identical piece of barbed wire suddenly dug into her leg. She cast a dirty glare at a newcomer who peered at them next to the wizard, who wore a dark smile. "Don't bother trying to break out, girls. Those barbs are Vengestone. And if you ain't heard of Vengestone before, then you should know that having Vengestone in contact with your flesh completely shuts down all a wizard's magic abilities,"

"What are you doing? What do you want?" Tyria demanded, Fleur's furious glare agreeing.

"Simple, lass. There's a real pretty bounty out for ya capture back in Electria. And me and my boys are in the mood to cash in," the chubby man, with his twin chins, fat jowls and ragged black clothing, wearing a black bandanna on his head. "And as for your little friend? I'm sure we'll find a use for her,"

If looks were daggers, Fleur would have gone on a killing spree.

"Alright! We got what we want, and we're clearing out! Everyone get a shimmy on!" The cage jolted and Tyria suddenly realised it was on wheels, as a horse's neigh warned her that they were moving.

~P's E~

The lights suddenly came back on, and Ariel looked around. Blanca was still unconscious, and a hysterical Eve was being comforted in a corner by her Spirit. "Where's Fleur and Tyria?" she wondered, looking around, peering out the window and checking the corridor. "Oh, shit,"

~P's E~

The next morning, the entire guild was in uproar. Most of the members lived in the Nest, and had heard the commotion. It hadn't taken long for word to spread that the girls had been attacked, and popular consensus was the launching of an all-out assault to retrieve their captured members.

The shrill noise of Boomer's Sound magic focused through Pierce's flute immediately interrupted all conversation in the hall, and Master Feng shouted to make sure it didn't start up again. "Attention!"

Finally, the hundred-odd members of the guild quietened and gave their master their full attention. "Thank you," the Fire wizard snapped. "This is obviously a serious matter! However, we cannot risk the all-out assault that many of you are in favour of. We do not know what these people want, and it could be that they intend to lure us out. If that is the case, we cannot allow ourselves to fall into their trap - however, we equally cannot allow this insult to go unanswered!"

"So, mastah. What's the plan?" Garrotte asked from the bar.

"Simple! I am commissioning a special job for a team of wizards to take the Garuda in pursuit and retrieve the captives!" Feng declared, to a roar of approval. "Pierce, Totomaru, Sarph, Boomer, Hare, and Grace! You six will take the Garuda in pursuit!"

Pierce grinned. He had hoped Master would let him get involved. No one was going to touch Tyria on his watch. He, along with the remainder of his team, and Totomaru, stood up in response. "Thank you, master," he nodded, still smiling. "Well, everyone? The longer we wait, the further away they'll be. Let's get moving!"

~P's E~

As the Garuda was loaded up with provisions, and Boomer reversed the Sonic Boom into the hull, Pierce and Sarph stood together near the tiller. "So, do you have any ideas where we should begin?" Sarph asked.

"One," Pierce admitted. "When I went to Hargeon to look for gifts, there was a smuggler who tried to get my to buy something. I blew him off, but he was very persistent - until I mentioned Tyria's name. Maybe it meant something to him, something we don't know about,"

"An Electrian smuggler?" Sarph questioned, and Pierce shrugged. "Someone who claimed to have Electrian goods, at least,"

"Tyria did say she had to escape to Fiore because her homeland was no longer safe for her to live in, right?" the pseudo-angel asked, and his teammate nodded. "Did she ever explain _why_ that was the case?"

Pierce blinked, thinking back. "No, I don't think she did. Electria's at war with Alvarez, we didn't pry,"

"Maybe our friend is more important to the Electrian cause than we thought," Sarph mused. "Either way, we should find this smuggler,"

They paused, watching Hare mutter to herself. "Can't believe I have to go on a job to rescue that mute skank," she huffed, before casting a dreamy glance at an oblivious Totomaru on the other side of the deck. "But I'll do anything to go on a mission with my beloved Totomaru!"

"Well, regardless, you need to stay objective," Sarph reminded his younger teammate. "I know you have feelings for Tyria, but you can't allow them to get in the way of getting the job done,"

"Don't worry. I won't," Pierce agreed.

"I'm good!" Boomer called from below decks, his voice accompanied by the sound of the pneumatic bay doors in the hull closing behind the Sonic Boom.

Several thunks heralded the arrival of supplies, transported by Grace's spatial magic. She was reluctant to transport people other than herself, but inanimate objects were no problem.

"I guess we're good to go," Sarph nodded.

~P's E~

Later that day, the Garuda landed in Hargeon. Within minutes of Hare setting out to scour the city, she located a nesting ground where all sorts of unsavoury characters cropped up.

Barely half an hour after that, Sarph broke down the door with his boot and strode inside, Pierce and Hare following him. In the dim light of the tavern, he cut an imposing figure, and the assorted criminal riffraff lining the tables of the bar quailed as his gaze swept over them. "Is he here, Pierce?" he asked.

Pierce scoured the area, and shrugged. "I don't see him,"

"Let me handle this," Hare smirked, and blurred. Within a second, three random patrons were lying on the ground with several bruises on their faces and Hare hovering over them, imposingly brandishing her giant saucepan. She menacingly glared at the shivering patrons. "Two girls from our guild got kidnapped last night, and we think one of you knows why. If someone doesn't speak up, heads are gonna roll, and I can assure you they won't be ours,"

"Ah," Hare whirled and shot a menacing glare at the bartender as he spoke up. "Well, it may be just a coinky-dink, but one of my regulars who was in here yesterday paid his tab. He said that his smugglers' group was going bounty hunting for a missing war criminal, and he'd be off in Electria for a while,"

Sarph blinked. "War criminal?" he repeated, thinking of Tyria. "Can that be right?"

"Can anyone corroborate?" Hare imperiously asked, and another patron whimpered. Within seconds Hare was crouching over him with her frying pan and a murderous expression, and the man's nerve broke. "Okay! I left that smuggling group two days ago. They were planning to hire a dark wizard or two and go to Magnolia because this girl had a bounty on her head in Electria. That sorta thing don't sit well with me; smuggling goods and animals is all good and well, but I didn't sign on for no kidnapping. So I ditched,"

"Where are they?" Pierce demanded, joining Hare.

"You won't find them around here. They'll be at sea by now, on their way to Electria,"

Pierce and Hare exchanged a glance, and the Speed wizard brought her saucepan down on the man's head. "Alright, let's go," Pierce declared.

"Go where?" Hare frowned, but Sarph grinned, already tracing Pierce's train of thought. "The market, of course. It's four days' sail to Electria, and we need to stock the Garuda,"

A/N

 **A/N**

 **And it only took 32 chapters before the prospective relationship between Pierce and Tyria hinted at way back in Chapter 2 went anywhere! XD**

 **Seriously, though. This arc, which is Electria, and Divine Caladrius (the Pierce-focused arc coming after Edolas) will do a lot of expanding Pierce and Tyria's feelings for each other. They might actually hook up by the end. XD ^^**

 **Peace!**


	35. The School At War: Atsphuria's College!

Chapter 35: The School At War: Atsphuria's College

Two days later, the Garuda was out at sea, and everyone in Phoenix's Eye back in Magnolia had heard of their departure from Fiorean soil.

However, even though they were all rooting for their teammates in Electria, life at the guild went on as normal. And 'normal' at present meant preparing for Christmas.

So it was that Ariel was sauntering through town with a basket balanced on her hip, out shopping for a good turkey that could fill the guild's collective stomach. Her seaweed-green hair rustled in the wind, and she had a blue winter coat on over her normal pink dress. She absent-mindedly twirled her gold and green fountain pen between the fingers of her left hand, and hummed as she walked. (Having Boomer around broadened everyone's tastes in music.)

There was a faint noise in the distance, a magicmobile. It sounded fast. Ariel took no heed, and wondered how the vehicle in question might compare to the Sonic Boom as she strolled across the road, making for the -

There was a thunderous roar, a loud honking, and suddenly she was sent flying across the street. Her vision began to go spotty, but Ariel registered her body smashing into a wall on the other side of the street, and there was a sharp _crack_. That sounded like a skull. Maybe it was hers. Eh, not a big deal.

Faintly, she heard someone screaming, and lots of footsteps. "Shit, is she dead?" someone asked, sounding panicked.

That wasn't particularly likely, Ariel mentally snorted. Already, she could feel her skull knitting itself back together, and she was about to sit up, before remembering that people would expect a fair bit of neanderthalic moaning and groaning after a blow like that.

She uttered a moan that, admittedly, sounded more like a yawn as she sat up, making sure to clutch her head to add realism.

"Are you alright?" a man asked, hovering over her.

"I'm fine," Ariel quickly replied, standing up perhaps a bit too quickly and looking around. "Oh, where'd my basket go?"

"Are you sure? You should be in hospital after a hit like that!" a woman protested, but a panicked-looking man, probably the driver of the truck that had hit her, hastened to interrupt. "Now, no need to get hasty. She's fine, see? Nothing to worry about,"

"Yeah? Well, wizards like me are made of stronger stuff than that. Now, I really need to get to the market," Ariel interrupted the crowd, locating her basket and briskly walking off. Reluctantly, the crowd dispersed, and she breathed a quiet sigh of relief, glad that they had bought the 'wizards like her' line. After all, it would hardly do for them to think she was anything other than an average wizard. If they did, her cover might be blown.

~P's E~

The journey over the ocean passed without incident. Sarph used his Archive to send a message to Master Feng, informing her that they were leaving Fiore and would thus be out of range of communications.

The first trouble they had was when the Electrian port town of Lyceum they had been making for came into sight. Sarph, gratified that his navigation skills were spot-on, carefully put the Garuda down in the ocean, before cruising into the docks.

The gangplank was set out, and Pierce made to disembark, fully prepared to soak in the Electrian culture - when he was forestalled by a pair of prim-looking officials in dark blue uniforms with awkward-looking, large moustaches. They had white skin, which Pierce guessed marked them out as emissaries of the Alvarez Empire. Time to hold his cards close.

"Who are you and why are you docking at my port?" one of them demanded.

"Your port?" Pierce blinked.

"Yes. My technical operatives attempted to contact your vehicle via radio, however we received no response. You ought to be grateful, I would have been within legal rights to blow you out of the sky. So if you don't mind, I would like an explanation of who you are, why you are here, and why on Earth Land your vehicle lacks a radio!"

"Right," Pierce nodded, processing this as the rest of his group paused behind him. "We're guild wizards of the Phoenix's Eye guild in pursuit of a criminal group that we believe fled here to Electria. They have taken captives that we have been tasked with retrieving," All technically the truth.

"And the radio?"

"What's a radio?" Pierce responded with a shrug.

The official pinched the bridge of his nose. "Right. You're Fioreans," he shook his head. "Ugh. Very well, you may proceed, however you ought to be aware that things work differently here in Electria. There are no guilds, and the authorities have no legal obligation to offer any assistance with your jobs, therefore you should not come crawling to me or my superiors if you need aid. If that's all, I shall be off,"

In spite of this, he watched as the Fioreans disembarked. Grace, the last one off the boat, looked up at him, her mind stuck on something he'd said. "Excuse me, mister nice man?"

The official smiled at this description. "Yes?"

"If you don't have guilds, then what do you do when monsters or dark wizards make a nuisance of themselves?" the Dragon Slayer questioned.

The man gave her a confused look. "Well . . that's what we have colleges for,"

"Colleges?" Grace repeated, but Sarph beckoned her onwards. "Come on. We can find out about the local customs later,"

The group, followed by the official and his backup, traversed the pier and reached the wharf within minutes. "Okay, everyone. If we aren't getting help from the authorities, we should split up and ask around. Grace, you're with me. Sarph, with Hare. Totomaru, Boomer? You two stick together. And Boomer?"

"Yeah?" the pudgy teen asked.

"Don't call the Sonic Boom unless you absolutely have to. Remember, everyone, this place is occupied by the Alvarez Empire, and from what I've heard it's not very content. Try not to make trouble if you can avoid it,"

"I'll make all the trouble I want, thank you very much," Hare huffed and sped away. Sarph sighed and went after her.

"We should go," Totomaru suggested, and Boomer nodded. "Where should we start?"

"The local bars, of course,"

This left Pierce and Grace alone as the officials moved on. "Let's head into town. See what we can hear," he suggested, and Grace nodded, leading the way out of the docks.

~P's E~

It didn't take long for Totomaru to find a tavern along the wharf. He sidled in, and if not for his skin colour marking him out amongst the black Electrians the fire wizard would have seemed totally at home. Boomer trailed after him, looking a lot more conspicuous, least of all because of the heavy boombox he was carrying.

"What'll it be?" the bartender asked, suspiciously eyeing Totomaru. The wizard took no offence; in the situation, Electrians would likely be suspicious of any foreigners. And while it was usually easy to distinguish Fioreans from Alvarez peoples, Totomaru doubted he understood the distinction. "One piña colada and some equally juicy information,"

"Of what sort?" the bartender asked as he set about preparing the drink.

Boomer heaved himself onto the next stool as Totomaru responded, "Oh, this and that. I would most certainly appreciate knowing if any smugglers arrived from Fiore in the past day or so, but that's incidental. I'm really here for the drink,"

"Well, aren't we all?" another patron chuckled nearby. The bartender, though, was not amused. "Maybe there were smugglers here. What's it to you?"

"Like I said, incidental," Totomaru shrugged. "It would be good information to have, but I suppose if you don't know, then I'll take the drink and go ask someone else. I'm sure one of your rivals will be more forthcoming,"

Boomer watched in silence as Totomaru downplayed the importance of the information they sought, while simultaneously both working his way into their company's trust and laying down an unspoken challenge to the bartender. It was amazing - he could never wheedle information out of a source like that.

"I'll have you know that my bar's the best in town, and the smugglers from last night will agree!" the bartender roared as he slid the drink over to Totomaru, then paused, realising what he had said.

He suddenly chuckled. "Alright, my friend, I'll admit it, you got me good,"

"How gratifying," Totomaru doffed an imaginary hat and sipped from his drink.

"I'll eat my hat if you're an Alvarez man. Tell me, what brings you here? I might be able to help yas after all,"

"Well, your hat can survive undigested another day. Me and my friend are guild wizards from Fiore, tracking a gang of kidnappers who escaped via boat. We're trying to pick up their trail," the fire wizard explained.

"Oh, guild wizards, eh? Fancy-like," the man nodded with a smile. "Well, there was a gang here last night. Claimed to have business with Alvarez on behalf of a bounty. I didn't ask, but it sounds to me like whoever they kidnapped is in the Empire's hands now,"

"I see," Totomaru nodded. "Thank you for your help," He finished his drink and stood, dropping a couple of coins onto the bar. "Well, we ought to be going. I'll make sure to look you up if I'm ever around again,"

"It'll be a pleasure," the bartender nodded as they left, before scooping up the coins. "Wait - these are Fiorean jewels! Urgh, worthless!"

~P's E~

As they strolled through town, Sarph looked around in wonder. "Incredible. This place is so amazingly advanced,"

Hare shrugged. "Doesn't matter how advanced something is. It all blows up the same,"

"Oh, stop being so unappreciative. I might just get some souvenirs," Sarph mused, looking around for an appropriate shop.

"Alright, you do that. I'm gonna find someone who might actually know something about our job," Hare rolled her eyes, not that Sarph (who had altogether too much practice ignoring her) took any notice. If he'd thought about it, he would have realised that Hare going off by herself, with the stated intention of quite literally asking for trouble, was a bad thing even if they weren't in a foreign country with an extremely volatile temperament. Sadly, he was too bury poring over designer alarm clocks to notice.

He had examined, and purchased the finest of, a selection of miniature steam-powered replica ships, tourist's guides to Electria, and bobble-heads of famous Electrian figures of national importance, and was critically eyeing a series of Electrian 'genius wigs' - essentially afros in the same hair colour as various famous scholars. The producers made the bold claim that wearing them endowed you with the intelligence of the people they were modelled after, which even Sarph found far-fetched - when Hare tapped him on the shoulder.

"What is it?" he asked, noting with surprise that Hare's customary disdainful expression had been replaced by an indifferent one with faint tinges of concern. "I . . _might_ have pissed off an entire trading company's worth of hired goons,"

"What," Sure enough, there was a veritable army of multicultural thugs chasing down the street after Hare. "And you lead them to me?" The golden warrior demanded. demanded.

"Well, you're S-Class. I figured you could handle it," Hare nonchalantly shrugged.

"There is a difference between being S-Class and being able to take on an entire army single-handedly!" Sarph almost screamed in her face.

The two of them looked back at the approaching mob. "We should run," Sarph finally decided. "Way ahead of you," Sure enough, Hare was already gone.

Sarph groaned, manifesting his Aera. "Why do I work with her again?"

~P's E~

Pierce and Grace spotted an official-looking building made of a gray material as soon as they reached the town square. "I think that's the police station," Pierce commented, thinking back. "Wasn't there something about a bounty?"

"If there are bounties, those will probably be on display at the police station," Grace suggested.

As they walked, Pierce noted that while the streets were populated with a mix of black Electrians and white Alvarez people, the Electrians severely outnumbered the Alvarez. However, upon entering the precinct, he was only mildly surprised to find that the entire place was staffed exclusively by Alvarez.

"There!" Grace exclaimed, and the Tamer followed her gaze to a wall plastered with pieces of paper, each with 'WANTED' printed on bold letters on the top. Pierce read a few of them. "Alice Gehabich; 5,000 ingots. I guess ingots are the currency here,"

He looked at the next one, and blanched. "Gabriel Atsphuria . . One MILLION ingots?!" Pierce wasn't sure what the exchange rate between jewels and ingots were - two and a half jewels to an ingot or something, perhaps - but that kind of money would be the sum total of two or three years' worth of work at the guild for him.

"Over here!" Again, the Dragon Slayer had spotted something before Pierce had, and he crouched to read one of the lower posters. "WANTED: Tyria Zechtian. 50,000 ingots,"

"Huh," Grace agreed.

"Oh, don't bother with that one," a passing woman wearing an Alvarex police uniform shook her head, before pausing. "Aren't you a little young to be chasing after criminals?"

"We're guild wizards from Fiore, on the trail of a band of kidnappers," Pierce explained, and the policewoman, who was evidently aware of Fiorean customs, nodded in understanding. "I see,"

"Why shouldn't we bother with this one?" Grace questioned.

"Because she got brought in last night by a gang of smugglers," the woman shrugged. "They even threw in an accomplice of hers for good measure,"

Pierce and Grace exchanged a glance. "Really?"

"That was easy," the spatial wizard smiled.

"What was easy?" the policewoman frowned.

"Well, we shouldn't waste time. Grace, do your thing," Pierce grinned, and Grace's smile grew wider as she inhaled. She didn't often get _permission_ to destroy a building, so she was gonna enjoy this. "Reality Dragon's Roar!" With that, she unleashed a maelstrom of grey energy throughout the building, launching it through the door and obliterating the room beyond - and the room beyond that, and the room beyond that.

The stunned policewoman gaped, and Pierce took advantage of her distraction to punch her in the head, and she fell to the ground, unconscious. "Let's push the advantage!" he declared, and his flute appeared, at which point he started playing. Knox emerged with a howl. "Go!" the Tamer declared, leading the charge into the ruins of the police station.

The majority of the staff had been caught off-guard, but a few were still standing. Or, at least, they were before Grace started using her Reality Dragon's Transcending Fist. They fell in a flurry of spatial blows, and Knox took care of any who decided to get up.

"There's a sign here! 'Cells'!" Pierce narrated, leading the other two inside. Confident that they shouldn't expect anything Grace couldn't handle, he recalled Knox and they strode into the cells.

"I don't see her," the green-haired girl pointed out.

"No, she isn't here," Pierce was about to curse, then remembered who was listening. "Darn," he hastily corrected.

"So . . we just destroyed a police station for nothing?" Grace queried.

"Apparently," Pierce agreed. They left the cells, making their way back through the rubble - and froze.

Rank upon rank of Electrian soldiers greeted them at the entrance, presided over by an Alvarez wearing ornate, golden armour and wielding a golden spear, with a purple plume on his helmet. "I am Tarquin Valois of the mighty Alvarez Militia! Surrender, rebel scum!" he imperiously declared.

Pierce and Grace exchanged another glance. "Let's jet," Pierce suggested, rapidly playing the tune to call out Raya.

The assembled soldiers gasped as the mighty, regal, adolescent phoenix erupted from seemingly nowhere and shrieked as Pierce climbed onto her back. Grace vanished into a flicker of reality, and Raya spread her wings, thrusting herself into the air.

On a nearby rooftop, a short person in a hood, with pale pink hair hanging out, watched, impressed. "Hot damn. I like this guy already,"

Raya soared upwards, and Grace materialised, clinging onto Pierce's waist. "Looks like we're in the clear," the phoenix grinned.

It was then that one of the soldiers shot a net out of a strange cannon of some sort, which of course soared through the air and wrapped around Raya's rear end. She squeaked as her tailfeathers were pulled out of whack, and started sinking to the ground.

Pierce hastily played the tune to recall her when they were a few feet from landing, and as the net fell away, he and Grace landed carefully. However, while they were landing, Tarquin had predicted the place they would touch down and had his men surround them.

"Aw shoot," Pierce sighed, stowing his flute in his Requip space. "Grace, get out of here. We don't both have to be captured,"

"I won't leave you!" his guildmate exclaimed.

"How touching," Tarquin huffed, emerging form the crowd and striding towards them. "Any final words before you're taken captive?"

"I've got a few!" an unfamiliar, high-pitched, almost lyrical voice called. "Airnvention: Kite!" There was a sudden gust of wind, and a green kite with silver struts shot through the air above them, trailing a cord of steel wool. At the other end was a young man, a little older than Pierce, wearing a green coat and with bleached pink hair, light blue eyes, and with the rope attached around his waist. He shot a mischievous smile at Tarquinius, who fumed, as he snatched up Pierce in one hand and Grace in the other, lifting them into the air.

The three came to rest on a nearby roof, and the Kite dissipated into ethernano as their rescuer grinned at the Phoenixes. "Heard you were looking for Tyria,"

Pierce blinked. "You know Tyria?"

"Sure. You don't forget a girl like her, though it's a bummer she got caught. But hey, that's what we're here for, right?" the boy grinned.

Pierce raised an eyebrow at his cavalier attitude, noticing something as he did; the boy wasn't Electrian. But he didn't have the skin tone and rounded features of an Alvarezian, or the angularity of a Fiorean - Pierce had only occasionally seen features like this before, but he recognised them immediately. "You're from Vestal," he noted with mild surprise.

"Yeah, but that was years ago. These days, I'm Electrian in all but blood," Pounding footsteps interrupted them. "Okay, time to jet! Try to keep up!" he declared, sprinting along the rooftops. Pierce and Grace unhesitatingly followed him.

"I didn't catch your name!" Pierce pointed out as a detachment of soldiers emerged from the building and chased them along the roof, while the main force followed them from the ground.

"And I didn't catch yours!" he evenly responded. "Oh, hey, look at that! Is that a mob?! You don't see mobs around here much!"

Forestalled, Pierce followed his ally's gaze, and blinked when he saw Hare and Sarph running from an angry mob of dock workers. "Oh no. What did Hare do now?"

"Friends of yours?"

"Unfortunately," Grace weighed in. "I'll go tell them to head this way," she said and vanished into a ripple of reality.

The Vestal blinked, even as they still ran. "Is that -"

"Normal? Yes," Pierce reassured him. He cast a glance at the armoured soldiers still chasing them down the roof, and rolled his eyes. "One sec," he declared, Requipping his flute and playing a quick tune, even as he spun to face the oncoming assault.

They definitely didn't expect a kraken to appear out of nowhere and start tossing them around like rag dolls. "Bad metal people! Bad!" Inky squealed.

Pierce's rescuer watched this with eyebrows raised, skidding to a halt. "Huh. Pretty good," he admitted with a quaver in his voice, rubbing his pocket. "I kind of what to know your name now,"

"Pierce Blastreyne, of the Phoenix's Eye guild," The Tamer tried to cut as impressive a figure as possible as he said this. "You just met Grace Hystia, and down there are Hare Kransúx and Sarph," he paused, wracking his brains for Sarph's surname, before finally concluding that he didn't know it. "Just Sarph,"

"Phoenix's Eye, of course! You're that wizarding guild Tyria joined to get by in Fiore! She told us all about you in her letters," the boy explained, before posing in his own right with a cocky grin. "And I guess that makes me Lync Volan, junior student of Headmaster Atsphuria's College of Practical Education,"

"College?" Pierce repeated in confusion.

"I'll explain later," Lync suggested as more soldiers emerged from the roof. Pierce hurriedly recalled Inky, and they continued running towards the end of the street, which now had a mob of dock workers milling into it, lured by Hare and Sarph.

Sarph suddenly took flight, sprouting his Aera wings and snatching Hare up, lifting her into the roofs on the other side of the street, even as the soldiers on the ground, who were watching Pierce and Lync on the roof, continued to chase after them without looking where they were going.

The two mobs smashed into each other, the state of affairs rapidly dissolving into a chaotic brawl.

"Hold on!" Lync commanded, grabbing Pierce from behind with his arms and declaring, "Airnvention: Kite!" The metal kite took form again, immediately catching the wind and lifting them into the air, where they soared over the chaos beneath and landed on the other side, with Pierce's guildmates.

"This is Lync. He's a friend of Tyria's," Pierce hastily explained.

"We should get out of here. Is there anyone else we need to pick up?" Lync questioned, and Sarph nodded. "Boomer and Totomaru. They should be waiting back at the Garuda by now, though,"

"Our airship," Pierce immediately clarified. "It's docked in the harbour,"

"Sweet. Let's get to it!" Lync declared, jumping off the building into the next street over. With a moment's hesitation, the Phoenixes followed.

It wasn't long before they arrived st the Garuda once more, and found Totomaru and Boomer waiting for them. "What took you?" the fire wizard called, folding his arms (and Hare silently squealed over how attractive that position made him look).

"We ran into a spot of trouble," Sarph summarised as they rushed on board and Pierce played to summon Kit, so he could possess the airship.

"Who's this?" Boomer asked, and Lync grinned. "Name's Lync Volan," he introduced himself with a mock salute. "More friends of Tyria's?"

"She did help me take down a giant rampaging demon," Boomer shrugged, and the Vestal raised his eyebrows. "Well, that's a new one,"

The deck shivered, and the Garuda lifted off. "Where to?" Pierce asked, expecting Lync to give them directions.

"Uh . . thataway," he replied, pointing.

Pierce blinked at the awfully vague description, but Kit reassured him via the speakers. "Don't worry, I can work with that!"

~P's E~

A few hours of sailing northwest along the countryside later, Lync commanded them to put down in the middle of an empty grassland. There was a town in the distance, with a trail leading through the area.

"Why here? There's nothing around," Boomer pointed out.

"You sure?" Lync grinned.

"I like the way this guy thinks," Kit offered, and the airship tilted, descending.

Suddenly, there was some kind of ripple. "You all might wanna watch this," Lync advised, leaning over the side. The Phoenixes joined him, and gasped, seeing a white line of energy sliding up the hull. Soon, it reached the upper deck, and rapidly passed over the inhabitants of the vehicle - and all simultaneously gasped.

Where there had previously been empty countryside, there was now, beneath them, a massive, sprawling building of weathered stone, with tall towers, ornate windows and several smoking chimneys, surrounded on all sides by sports grounds, shooting ranges, practice arenas, and a lake.

"Oh wow," Pierce gasped, and, once they had finished drinking in the sight, all turned to Lync. "What is this place?"

"Welcome, wizards of Phoenix's Eye, to Headmaster Atsphuria's College of Practical Education!" Lync declared with a wide smile.

The Garuda touched down in the centre of an unused playing field, and dozens of people aged from their young teens to late thirties crowded around. "Hey, it's Lync!" "Lync's back!" a couple cheered.

"Thank you, thank you, my adoring public!" Lync declared, leaping into the bow and presenting himself to the crowd. "And it is my pleasure to introduce some new allies of ours; the Fiorean wizards of Phoenix's Eye!"

The crowd, which had been mostly interested in the airship, began to disperse, and only the less mature members who found Lync's theatrics amusing stayed.

"As much as I'd love to regale you with tales of my adventures since I left, last week, I must bring the newcomers to see Headmaster Atsphuria. So perhaps another time," The remainder of the crowd nodded and began to disperse.

"Alright," the Vestal strode down the gangplank Kit had extended, and the Phoenixes followed.

"Okay, seriously now. What's a college?" Grace asked.

"Yeah, I suppose it is time to explain," the boy chuckled, gesturing around. "This is Atsphuria's College, a collective institution in which people from near and far can come to study their interests, both in theory and in practice. Follow me, I want to show you something!" he declared, skipping forwards down the path. The Fioreans rushed to catch up, though Sarph didn't seem to be in any hurry. He was enthralled by the splendour of the college. "This place makes Phoenix's Eye look like a dump," he whispered, and paused. "Did I say that out loud?"

Eventually, Lync led them to the driveway that came up to the great double doors at the centre of the building, and paused in front of them. "Check this!" he declared, swinging the doors open and revealing its contents.

Pierce gasped. "It's a guild hall,"

And it was. A massive room, laid with several long tables of ornate wood. Underfoot, the floor was shag carpet, and in one corner was a bar. But the big factor? The end of the room was adorned by a massive board, plastered all over by what Pierce immediately recognised as job requests.

"Not quite. This is Atsphuria's College's common room. Students of the college congregate here to make friends and take assignments to get credit," At this, Lynx gestured at the board.

"Credit?" Sarph parroted.

"When you accept off-campus assessment tasks, you get a measure of credit, and there's usually a monetary reward too. Of course, the College takes a cut of all money earned by students on assignments to keep itself running, but the credit's the important bit. Because you can only progress up the college hierarchy by racking up credit," the pink-haired student explained, leading them towards a side door in the common room.

"Interesting," Totomaru offered, and he continued. "People come to colleges like this one to study their interests, and take assignments so that they can both help people who need it and further their studies of their chosen fields. Me, for example? I'm majoring in aviation, with a minor in weather patterns. So someone like me would usually take assignments relating to aircraft or abnormal weather,"

"Wow. So colleges in Electria serve the same purpose as guilds in Fiore," Boomer guessed.

"Sort of, yeah," By now, Lync was taking them up a large staircase, leading them towards the uppermost reaches of the building. "What do you use the credit for?"

"Well, it adds up. And once you've racked up a hundred thousand credit points, you get to take the exams. And if you pass the exams, you become an S-Class student!"

"S-Class?" Sarph repeated in surprise.

"Yeah. Senior Class students, or S-Class -"

"So 'S-Class' means a different thing in Electria," Boomer quietly observed.

"- get to take the toughest assignments. And if an S-Class proves themselves tough enough to exceed the demands of their role, then they graduate and become professionals, hiring their services out to the highest bidders. But that's a really lofty goal. Most people drop out when they reach a position they're satisfied with, usually without even reaching S-Class,"

By now, they had paused outside a large, ornate door. "Of course, given the fact that we're at war with Alvarez, things don't work quite like they normally do at present. But Headmaster Atsphuria will be able to explain all that better," Lync finished, before knocking on the door.

"So, this Headmaster Atsphuria, he's like the Guild Master of the college?"

"Exact-a-rooney," Lynx grinned. He rubbed his pocket doors swung open, and the party strode in.

The office was large and opulent, plastered with wood and hung up with paintings all over. A desk made of marble occupied the centre of the room, and the back was entirely taken up by bookshelves.

And, at the desk, was seated an elderly man with a long, wispy beard, dressed in white robes with purple highlights and golden trim. He looked up as the forum entered, and smiled, navy blue eyes twinkling. "Ah, Lync. How goes it? I see you've brought guests . . I take it the assignment of rescuing Tyria did not succeed?"

"Unfortunately, she was already en route to Teslon by the time I arrived and was in a position to do anything. I would have pursued, but there were, ah, complicating factors," At this, Lync gestured to the Fioreans.

"And, who are these people, exactly?" Atsphuria questioned with a kindly smile, but Pierce recognised the guarded expression in his eyes.

"We're wizards from Phoenix's Eye, the guild Tyria joined in Fiore. She was kidnapped from our guild's dormitories last week, and we came in pursuit," Pierce, taking the role of team leader, stepped forwards, raising his hand to reveal his guild mark.

"Is that so? Well then," Atsphuria's smile widened. "It's good to know my protege has made friends in Fiore. Has her mission been a success?"

Pierce blinked, faltering. "Ah . . what mission? She told us she was a refugee,"

The Headmaster's eyebrows twitched upwards. "Oh? I see," he nodded gravely. "I suppose I did impress on her that secrecy was of the utmost importance. I should have expected you would not know, however, in light of the fact that you are willing to go so far for her sake, the six of you deserve to be aware of what we are fighting for," All of the wizards reacted with interest at this. So Tyria _was_ a war criminal? Though, by that logic, so was everyone else in the College.

"Tyria did not, as you believe, escape Electria for her own safety. Rather, she was entrusted with a mission that is of the utmost importance to the survival of Electria. She was given a Compendium of Electrian culture itself; our most sacred texts and valuable artefacts, true and accurate records of our history, and our most dangerous weapons, the likes of which Alvarez can never be allowed to possess. She was instructed to take the Electrian Compendium and flee from our homeland, to find a place in some distant land where it could be hidden, that only she would know where it is. That way, even if Electria should fall to Alvarez, the spirit of our culture will live on, ready to be revived when our descendants have need of it once more. This information, the location of the Electrian Compendium, is why Alvarez wants her; if they force her to give up its whereabouts, somewhere in Fiore no doubt, they will be able to retrieve the Compendium and either destroy it, or use it for their own malign ends. Either outcome would be disastrous for Electria as a whole, and the entire world would have little defence if the Electrian secrets in the Compendium were to be used for the gain of Alvarez," Atsphuria gravely explained.

"Oh dear," Totomaru commented, eyes wide.

"No wonder she didn't tell us. If we knew about the Compendium, we'd become liabilities that Alvarez could exploit," Boomer realised.

"The location of the Compendium cannot be allowed to become known to the Alvarez Empire. However, equally so, we cannot allow Tyria's demise, or the information will be equally lost to our cause as it would be to theirs. So, wizards of Phoenix's Eye, I have an official job request that I would like to ask of you. Will you aid us in the rescue of Tyria Zechtian and see her returned safely to Fiore, where she must stay to guard the Compendium until Alvarez is no longer a threat to Electria?"

The Phoenixes exchanged glances, and confident grins spread throughout the group. Again, Pierce said what they were all thinking. "Heck yeah we will,"

A/N

 **A/N**

 **Here we go. A total break from traditional Fairy Tail arc structure. I bet you all can't wait to see what's coming next!**

 **Also, that opening scene . . so I've been watching this anime called Ajin: Demi-Human recently. Might have given me an idea or two. {cue dramatic grand organ Ajin music} Peace!**


	36. Ominous Whispers

Chapter 36: Ominous Whispers

"Okay, so, Tyria is being taken via armed convoy along this route to Teslon," Lync explained.

Teslon was the capital city of Electria, currently occupied by the Alvarez army and serving as their centre of operations. The country had no royal family for Alvarez to hold hostage, however the Electric Council, the eight members of the ruling body of Electria, had all been incarcerated, with the exception of Lord Rolfe, who had defected to Alvarez. He was currently in position as a puppet ruler for the Empire.

After leaving Headmaster Atsphuria's company, Lync and Team Pierce plus Totomaru had had lunch, and were now crouched over a large metal box bearing a map of three-dimensional light that showed a region of Electria. A red dotted line showed the route Tyria and Fleur's jailers were taking them, and Sarph was poring over the device, fascinated by how it worked.

"Don't forget Fleur. They're probably still together," Totomaru pointed out.

"Right, of course," Lync nodded, correcting himself. "Anyway. If we leave today on board your airship, we should be able to intercept them here, at Somerset Bridge," He indicated a large metal suspension bridge that crossed a ravine on the route. "If we land the airship on the bridge -"

"Garuda," Boomer reminded him, and Lync nodded. "The Garuda on the bridge's far end, and a couple of us hide on the near end, we can trap them on the bridge. It should be a cinch to rescue Tyria and Fleur from there,"

"Sounds good," Sarph grinned as Totomaru mulled it over, eventually nodding.

"I'm down with it," Grace agreed, and Boomer shot them a thumbs up. Hare tched and shrugged.

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Pierce declared.

~P's E~

So it was that, a few hours later, in the middle of the afternoon, the Garuda was cruising through the sky. In the distance, the bridge was in sight.

The airship hovered over the bridge, putting down with its hull lengthways over the far end. Lync, Boomer and Totomaru left the ship and ran down the empty bridge to the other end, and, while the Phoenixes crouched in bushes, Lync rose his hands to the sky and invoked; "Airnvention: Camoflauge!" Metal struts formed a tent around him, as colourful gossamer covered him, adopting the hues of the sky. As long as no one looked too closely, he would not be spotted. Meanwhile, Sarph flew up to the uppermost pylons of the suspension bridge and readied his Archive lasers, ready to pick off anyone who might escape by air.

"They should be here within twenty minutes," the S-Class wizard told everyone using his telepathy. "Be on guard!"

Exactly nineteen minutes later, a trio of large, armoured magicmobiles drove down the country road and onto the bridge, all gunmetal grey with several (hopefully) ornamental spikes on their turtleshell-like exteriors and squat cockpits with tinted glass windscreens.

In sequence, they drove onto the bridge, and the lead one stopped only feet from the Garuda. The cockpit's door opened and an armoured soldier emerged, immediately spotting Pierce up on the deck. "Is there a problem?" the man hollered.

Pierce, pretending to be busy with some rope, looked around in mock surprise and strode to the edge of the deck. "Oh, hey! Yes, actually, there is!"

"Well, I hope we can clear it up fast. We're on official Alvarez business, and can't afford to be delayed for long," the soldier irritably explained.

"Don't worry," Suddenly, Pierce's flute was in his hand, and a fireball bowled the soldier over. He leapt from the deck and landed on top of the man, delivering a knockout blow, before straightening. "This shouldn't take long at all,"

Soldiers started emerging from the frontal and rear vehicles, and Hare sped past Pierce to lay into them. Several spontaneously fell as the air blurred around them, and Pierce knew Grace was doing her bit from the ship.

In the distance, he could hear blasts of Sound magic, as well as flashes of light from Lync's Airnvention spells and Totomaru's Rainbow Flare.

As the two groups boxed in the crowd and took them down, it wasn't long before they met up. Grace emerged from reality and Sarph flew down as the other five wizards congregated around the middle vehicle.

The door hissed, and a familiar figure stepped out of the cockpit, which immediately sealed itself behind him. The vehicle seemed to shrink into itself, much like the tortoise it was based on.

"Oh hey! It's Mister Valiant Effort," Lync mockingly greeted the imperial man.

"Lync Volan. Rebel scum, you know my name is Tarquin Valois," the gold-armoured man imperiously raised his head and jutted his chin as he spoke.

"Hey, guys? Do me a favour and leave this one to me. I've got history to settle with him," Lync requested.

"You speak as though your victory is assured. But I am confident that our battle shall end in my triumph," Tarquinius declared, raising his spear and preparing for combat.

"Says the shrimp cooking in his own armour. That junk can't be comfortable in the Electrian heat," Lync chuckled. "But fine, if you want me to get serious," He pulled back his cloak sleeve, revealing a white/green device on his arm, and pressed a button on it, which suddenly shone with a green light. "Gauntlet! Power Strike!"

"A Vestal combat gauntlet," Sarph recognised the device. "Mylene had one too,"

"A what?" Grace asked, and Sarph elaborated. "The Vestal people aren't naturally inclined towards magic like the peoples of Fiore, Alvarez or Electria. To rectify this, they created the Gauntlet, which artificially takes in ethernano from the air and stores it. A wizard wearing a Gauntlet can then use the ethernano stored inside it to fuel their spells. However, they're designed for Vestal physiology, so wizards like you and me can't use them,"

"I gotcha," Grace nodded.

As the Phoenixes took cover around the other side of the vehicle, searching for a way to penetrate its armour, the Vestal and the Alvarez squared off. "Surrender, and you will be granted a fair trial," Tarquin hmphed.

Lync chuckled. "Fair or not, I'd be hosed either way, so I'll pass on that," he shrugged, patting his pocket as he spoke. A magic circle appeared in his hand and he winked playfully as his Gauntlet lit up. "Airnvention: Rocket!" A hefty weapon appeared in his hands and he braced it against his shoulder before pulling the trigger, launching a massive silver projectile with green fins at Tarquin. The Alvarez captain whirled out of the way, using his spear to kick off and allow the attack to impact the vehicle behind them.

When the smoke cleared, the vehicle was undamaged, but Tarquin was already responding. "I need no magic to take down a lowlife like you, Volan!" he hissed, lunging with his spear.

Lync blocked with his left arm, and the speartip slid off his Gauntlet. "Airnvention: Turbine!" he commanded, and a massive jet engine with a handle appeared in his hand, which he used to deliver a staggering blow to Tarquin's chest. The man staggered backwards, and his golden helmet with its purple plume slipped and fell off his head, revealing short red hair. Tarquin narrowed his eyes. "Fine," With a series of complicated flourishes, he drew a series of strokes in mid-air with his spear at incredible speed. "Impact Rune!" he declared, throwing the glyph at Lync with his spear.

A green magic circle momentarily appeared between Lync and the projectile, but it didn't seem to do anything, and he was knocked to the ground.

"Rebel scum. Just die already," Tarquin spat, advancing on the boy.

In seconds, thought Lync was back on his feet. With a dramatic flourish and a mocking smile, he cast away his coat, the dark green fabric with its black ruff falling to the ground and revealing that his body was now covered by sleek silver and green metal with fins on his forearms and thighs underneath the gold scale-mail undershirt and dark green trousers. His pale blue eyes had lit up, and he grinned with silver lips. "Check out my Airnvention: Plating!" he declared, tapping it with his metal finger. "Nothing gets through Vestal steel!"

"It doesn't matter. You cannot defeat me. Rust Rune!" Tarquin snorted, drawing and launching another Solid Script projectile from his spear, but rockets erupted from Lync's feet and launched him into the air, causing the Rune to pass beneath him. He extended a foot as he came down, delivering a staggering blow to Tarquin's head.

The metal armour retracted from his body as Lync released the spell to conserve magic power. "You so sure? 'Cause, from where I'm standing, that ain't the case,"

Staggering from the impact, Tarquin glared at Lync, who maintained his mocking smile. He rapidly sketched a new Rune, and launched it at him with blinding speed. "Destruction Rune!" he shouted.

Lync's smile evolved into a cruel smirk as he pressed his hands together, interlocking his fingers in a lattice with his palms outwards. "Airnvention: Repulsor!" Large squares of gunmetal, glowing black, latched onto his forearms, and as the Rune approached him, it slowed, pausing a foot in front of him, oppressed by invisible pulses from his shields. With an explosive motion, the boy swept his arms apart and, as he did, the Rune was launched back at its castor, who only watched in shock as it flew back at him. The Destruction Rune smashed into Tarquin with a massive explosion, sending him collapsing to the ground, unconscious, with his formerly golden armour blackened, singed, and slightly melted in places.

The Repulsors vanished as Lync smiled in victory, confident that his opponent was finished. With that, he rushed around to the other side of the vehicle, where Grace was using her spatial magic to pry the heavy metal doors apart. It was a slow process, and beads of sweat built up on her brow as she tore the metal apart. Sarph was assisting, using his own physical strength to push them further apart.

Eventually, the gap was wide enough for a person to squeeze through, and no one was surprised in the least when a guard burst through the gap. Unfortunately, the gap was only large enough for one person to come out at a time, and as the zealous guards, one by one, emerged, raring to go, they each realised that confronting a whole team of guild/college wizards alone was ill-advised.

It don't take long to clean up the remainder of the guards, and Pierce, Lync and Sarph eventually entered the vehicle while the others stood watch.

The interior was not much; the three emerged into a room with a bench along each wall, strewn with gear and weapons. At the far end was another set of heavy-looking doors, however, the controls to open them were on their side. The three grinned.

~P's E~

Tyria, who had been in a state of semi-slumber since being bundled into the car with Fleur, had roused herself at the sounds of a commotion outside. She had had her suspicions from the moment the vehicle stopped, but the ear-splitting noise that could only be a certain Sound wizard had confirmed them.

Even so, the sight that greeted her when the doors opened was a shock, as, never in her life, had she expected her two groups of comrades to cross over. So the sight of Pierce and Lync, standing together in the doorway, left her at a loss for words. "Whuh - huh?"

"Miss me?" Lync grinned, and Pierce smiled. "Phoenix's Eye sticks together,"

She rose, grinning, and rushed towards the two boys, raising her arms to embrace them in a group hug - but her cuffs held her arms together, and the chain round her ankle sent her sprawling to the floor.

"I'll get on that, shall I?" Sarph suggested, appearing and using his sword to cut open her bonds.

Freed, Tyria smiled at Pierce and Lync. "How did you get here? How did you two of all people end up together?" she asked.

"Well, we couldn't let the Compendium fall into jeopardy. And I didn't much like the idea of losing you, either," Lync pointed out.

"Plus, Phoenix's Eye was hardly going to let one of its own get kidnapped without proper retribution. Even if it means going up against the most powerful empire on the planet," Pierce grinned.

Tyria wrapped her arms around both of them, grinning thankfully.

A muffled cough interrupted them, and the four turned to see Fleur irritably glaring at them from the corner. She shook her cuffs and glared at Sarph, obviously displeased at being ignored.

Sarph sheepishly used Solamion to free her too.

Eventually, the nine wizards regrouped back on the Garuda. "You all should head back to Fiore as soon as possible, and I need to get back to the College," Lync suggested. "We can't take the chance that Alvarez will recapture . . any of us," It was painfully obvious that by 'any of us', he meant Tyria.

"I wish it were that simple," the tech wizard spoke up. "But while I was in captivity, they tried to convince me to join them - and told me a bit more than they really should have," she grimaced.

"You have intel?" Lync blinked in surprise. "What news?"

"Lord Rolfe and his Alvarez asshole friends are cooking some kind of plot up in Teslon. An unstoppable weapon of some sort. I didn't get every detail, but it's only a couple of days from completion, and the guards seemed pretty convinced that whatever they were doing, it would spell the end of Electrian resistance," she grimly explained. "They said it would be better for me if I just surrendered and joined them willingly,"

"That's not very concrete," Boomer pointed out, arms folded, and Sarph weighed in. "All the more reason to go investigate,"

"We do have an undercover agent in Teslon. If we go there, I could make contact and see what he's found out," Lync suggested, frowning. "But endangering the Compendium doesn't sit well with me," he admitted.

"Oh, and what about me? Am I just spare parts?" Tyria huffed, folding her arms.

"Of course not, you're crazy badass. But any chance the Compendium will fall into jeopardy can't be taken, no matter how small," Lync pointed out. Tyria blushed a little at the praise.

Pierce's eyebrows twitched downwards, spotting this. His compliments had never made Tyria blush.

Fleur coughed, before making a series of complicated hand signals at rapid speed. The others watched in confusion, before eventually looking to Totomaru for a translation. "She says that we also can't take chances with this Alvarez superweapon," the Fire wizard translated, and the Petal mage nodded in agreement.

"Plus, we only have one vehicle, so splitting up isn't an option, unless we plan to walk," Sarph reasoned.

The group all looked at each other. "I guess we're going to Teslon," Pierce shrugged.

"Not yet. First, we need to back to the College and get some reinforcements," Lync suggested. "You thinking what I'm thinking, Tyria?" he suggested.

The Electrian grinned. "A reunion of Team Ventus? Count me in!" With that, the two immediately dashed to the tiller, eager for take-off.

Pierce watched them go, consternation playing across his face. "She had a team before us?" he demanded of the nearest member of his group. Unfortunately, that was Hare, who mockingly cooed. "Aww, is someone jealous?" she chuckled.

Pierce was unamused. "You know, Fleur is standing awfully close to Totomaru," he pointed out, and Hare reacted predictably. "What? How dare that little . . ." She paused, before turning back to the Tamer. "Oh, ha ha ha,"

~P's E~

The Garuda docked back at Atsphuria's College with rather less fanfare than before.

"How's everyone been?" Tyria asked Lync as they dismounted, with the rest of the Phoenixes trailing in their wake.

"Not so good. Wembley was captured," Lync shook his head. "We haven't heard anything about him in months. I hate to admit it, but he's probably dead by now. And Alice is up north with her grandfather . . she should be back soon, though," he explained. "Hopefully,"

Tyria winced. "What about Laurel and Kay? Oh, and Aluze? How's he?"

Lync's hand brushed against his pocket as he walked. "Aluze is the same as ever," he shrugged. "We'll be meeting Kay in Teslon, he's been undercover there. But Laurel's doing fine. We'll see her soon,"

"Well, that's a relief," the Tech wizard grinned.

"Yeah. It is," Lync nodded.

"Who's Laurel?" Grace asked, running to catch up.

"Someone say ma name?" a loud voice challenged, and they all looked over to a tall, Electrian woman with long, green hair styled into an afro sidling towards them, with bronze-coloured clothing that had green trim. Pierce couldn't tell whether her clothes were fabric or actually made of strands of woven metal.

Laurel paused, her eyes widening, and ran towards them in delight. "Tyria! Ya back!" she beamed, throwing her a high-five. Tyria reciprocated, smiling equally widely. "Well, not for long," she admitted.

"Nah. Just good to see ya face!" Laurel grinned, before spotting the Fioreans behind her. "And who're these sugar-plums?"

"These are my friends from Phoenix's Eye, the wizarding guild I joined in Fiore," Tyria explained. "When I was captured, they came after me,"

"Well, that's darn impressive," the woman nodded, before leaning in. "Do they know about the you-know-what?" Laurel asked in an unsuccessful attempt to be quiet.

"You mean the Electrian Compendium? Yeah, Headmaster Atsphuria explained the whole thing when we got here," Pierce nodded. Next to him, Boomer stared up at the tall woman in equal parts shock and awe.

"It is getting a bit late," Sarph pointed out.

"You're right," Lync agreed. "Tyria, you and I should go report to the Headmaster. We'll catch up with this lot later. Laurel, how about you take our guests to the common room and show them a good time, Electrian style?"

"I'm down with that, brother," Laurel grinned, before beckoning. "Come on!"

Grace boggled at this statement as Tyria and Lync split off from the group. "She's Lync's sister?" she asked Pierce, which provided a welcome distraction for the Tamer from fuming over the fact that Lync had successfully gotten Tyria alone. "No, I'm pretty sure it's just a term of endearment,"

"Oh," Grace nodded, accepting this.

"Well? Come on!" Laurel demanded, leading the way down the path back to the common room in the centre of the building. "Anything you say," Boomer nodded a tad dreamily, following like a lost puppy.

~P's E~

"So, how's Fiore treated you?" Lync asked.

"It wasn't so good at first, but after I joined Phoenix's Eye? It's nice," Tyria admitted. "Definitely a bit more hectic than life here was before the war, but . . ."

"But what?" Lync asked.

"The guilds in Fiore. They aren't like our colleges, where people graduate when they have enough credit and move on in life. People can live like that there, spend their entire lives as guild wizards. It just . . ." Tyria shrugged helplessly.

Lync chuckled. "You're falling in love with Fiore,"

"I dunno, maybe?" Tyria shrugged. "It's a good place to live. I love being a student at Atsphuria's College, but the College is really little more than a glorified boarding school. Only the faculty stay here forever. But Phoenix's Eye? It's a home,"

Lync frowned to himself. He understood where Tyria was coming from; in all the uncertainty of the war and having to flee to safeguard the Compendium, it made sense that she'd want to find something constant to cling to. But he didn't like the idea of her considering somewhere other than Electria home . . it was selfish of him, he knew, but he wanted to keep Team Ventus together. He hadn't seen Wembley or Kay for months, and Alice wasn't around nearly as much as he'd like. And it had been a whole year and a half since Tyria had left . . he and Laurel were all that was left of Team Ventus. And Aluze, but he barely counted. He didn't want it to be that way.

"What's so good about that Fiore place anyway?" he sulkily asked.

"It's . . ." Tyria paused. "It's lively and exciting and the people are all so friendly and I've got friends and they don't judge me for being foreign and we even have a rival guild that we get to throw water balloons at and -" She paused for breath, panting.

Lync raised a salmon-pink eyebrow at this, eyeing the Vestal-pale skin on his hands. That . . sounded nice. "Really?"

"Yeah. Phoenix's Eye is a wonderful place to be," Tyria nodded, as her gaze drifted to the mark of an eye, framed with feathers, printed on her right shoulder.

They paused in front of the doors leading into the Headmaster's office. "Better than Atsphuria's College?" Lync softly asked.

Tyria indecisively buried her head in her hands. "I don't know," she admitted.

The doors in front of them swung open, and Tyria felt a familiar, aged hand rest on her shoulder. "Don't worry, my child. You have plenty of time to make up your mind," Gabriel Atsphuria reassured her. "I just hope you don't forget your dear old mentor," the dark-skinned, elderly man softly smiled. "And may I just say, I am glad to see you alive and well,"

"And what am I, scrapped parts?" Lync joked, folding his arms as he interrupted. His palm subconsciously brushed his pocket as he did.

"Of course not," Headmaster Atsphuria reassured him. "Come in, both of you. I want to hear about everything you've been up to, my student,"

~P's E~

"- and then I was all, like, bang, bang, bang, and Regykraeon was all 'he who laughs last laughs loudest' and then I was laughing really really loud because I totally beat him," Boomer was in the midst of recapping the conflict with Regykraeon to an attentive Laurel.

"Wow. You'd think we weren't even there," Pierce wryly commented to Sarph.

Kit, though (who had summoned himself out of boredom) was steadily growing more and more irritated as he tapped his paw on the table. "He'd completely ignoring my role in the fight!" he complained to anyone who would listen . . mostly Pierce and Grace.

"What role? You didn't do anything," Pierce pointed out.

"I flew the ship!"

"Actually, as I recall, _I_ flew the ship during the fight against Goliath. You were just the transportation when we went chasing after fat boy," Hare interjected.

"Y'now, it's weird. I actually can't remember anything of that fight," Grace frowned, scratching her head.

"Really?" Pierce frowned. The magic blocking the young girl's early memories did have a somewhat precarious hold on her mind, due to all the alterations that had been made to Grace's physiology when Brain turned her into the Reality Dragon Slayer. If more of her memories were being blocked . . . "Have you got any other gaps in your memory?"

Grace thought for a second, then shrugged. "Nope. I remember everything since joining Phoenix's Eye just fine . . even that embarrassing fight with Laxus," she admitted, a tad annoyed at the thought. Pierce nodded - based on how hard Grace had been hit then, if she didn't forgotten anyone it would have been that. "It's just that fight against Goliath, when you said I popped up and launched the first attack, that I can't remember,"

"Weird," Pierce nodded, making a mental note to ask Master Feng to check the memory enchantment when they got back to Fiore.

"Y'all should ask Alice to take a look," Laurel interrupted, proving that she had been listening in.

"Who?" Sarph questioned, and the Electrian elaborated. "A friend of me, Lync and Tyria's. She moved here with her grandpa when she was young 'cause he wanted to work alongside Electrian experts in his field, and she joined the college in the same year as the rest of us. Gal's way good at deciphering the intricacies of magic, she probably understands it better than the rest of us put together. She's with her grandpa now, but she should be back in a few days,"

"Okay," Pierce nodded, still not entirely comfortable with the idea of accepting assistance from Tyria's Electrian friends.

Dinner was procured, and the food was good. Even Hare cracked a smile at the cuisine, which was all the more welcome for the fact that they'd missed lunch.

Halfway through the meal, though, Tyria and Lync rejoined them, settling in the empty seats at the edge of the table. "I see someone's enjoying our food," she observed watching Boomer tuck in. "We have got to bring back a recipe so Sarah can put this on the menu!" he heartily endorsed the food.

"So, I sorted out the sleeping arrangements; Headmaster Atsphuria found a spare dorm room that you all can sleep in for tonight, and we'll depart for Teslon in the morning," Tyria explained.

"Works for me," Totomaru shrugged, and Fleur nodded in agreement; even if the petal mage hadn't been mute, her mouth was too full of Electrian food to talk. The rest of the team rapidly agreed.

"That's the plan, then," Sarph grinned. "Here's to tomorrow!" he declared, holding up a glass of wine. The rest of the group snatched up drinks, and were about to toast, but Pierce caught Grace's hand. "No alcohol! Sarph and Totomaru are the only ones old enough to drink anyway!"

Boomer and Fleur sulked. "Fine," Boomer groaned, while Fleur internally lamented the fact that her twenty-first birthday was a few months off yet.

 _~P's E~_

 _"Back by popular demand, it's DK's Documentaries!" Kit grinned. "Thank you all so much for leaving reviews stating that you wanted more explanation on how Electrian magic works - it convinced the author to add this little snippet to this chapter! And that means screentime for me!"_

 _"But I'd better get to it. First, you all have to understand that there wasn't really ever supposed to be an 'Electrian magic', so the concept isn't very . ._ defined _. Tyria was originally given technology-based magic because, while there's plenty of evidence of technology being a thing in Fairy Tail canon, there hadn't been much, if any, magic with a technology thematic. From there, when her backstory was conceived, it was immediately obvious that, since Headmaster Atsphuria was a mentor and surrogate father to Tyria, he should use a similar kind of magic. Since her backstory, and thus the entire nation of Electria, was built around her, it wasn't much of a leap to make Electria a nation that was far more technologically advanced than the rest of the world," Kit continued._

 _"This is where 'Electrian magic' comes from. However, it's important to note that Electrians do not exclusively use Electrian magic, and it is not used exclusively by Electrians. Lync, for example, learnt to use magic in Electria, so he follows its styles. Electrian magic is sort of like Alolan Form Pokemon, in a way . . . I know that's a bad analogy, but it's the only one I've got," Kit shrugged. "Point is, 'Electrian magic' really only refers to a particular, technology-based style of magic that originated in Electria but is by no means exclusive to it, and, similarly, technology magic is hardly the only kind practised in Electria,"_

 _"I think that's all! See you whenever, on DK's Ds!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **First off, sorry for the somewhat late post. I was away from home most of Sunday, and didn't think to bring my computer . . . and I definitely wasn't so distracted playing Pokemon Ultra Moon that I forgot to post when I got home or anything . . .**

 **And now we really get stuck into the meaty bits of the Electria arc. :) Time to get thwarting, Phoenix's Eye! Peace!**


	37. Attack and Counterattack

Chapter 37: Attack And Counterattack

Tyria softly moaned as faint noises roused her from sleep. Looking around, she saw that, in the bunk below her bed, Laurel was still asleep, and, in the other bunk bed, Fleur was still asleep on the bottom. Grace, though, was awake. "Do you hear that?" the young Dragon Slayer asked, straining her ears.

Tyria suddenly recalled hearing it said that Dragon Slayers had better senses than normal humans. "Kinda sounds like . . shouting?" With a quick spell, her magic's internal heads-up display appeared in her vision, and she checked the time. Two in the morning.

"Yeah. Lots of it, and it sounds angry," Grace agreed, sitting up. "Hold on, I'll take a look outside," The space rippled around her head, and suddenly Grace's head was gone.

Tyria squeaked in shock; the sight of her friend's headless body was _incredibly_ disconcerting.

But, after a moment, it reappeared, looking worried. "There's an army outside the college," the Dragon Slayer said.

By now, the conversation had woken Fleur and Laurel. "Chillax. The spells 'round this place are impenetrable. It don't matter if they're right outside the College's front gate, they don't know we're here,"

"Are you sure?" Tyria asked.

Laurel thought for a second. "I guess we shouldn't take chances," she admitted. "I'll go see wha's going on. Tyria, go wake the Headmaster. You two wake up the boys and give 'em the run-down," she commanded, getting out of bed. Grace nodded and vanished into a fold of reality, as Fleur silently yawned, waking up.

~P's E~

By the time she had pulled her combat pants on and ran down the corridors towards Headmaster Atsphuria's chambers, the noise had intensified enough that many denizens of the college had woken. Tyria pushed through the massing crowds, and eventually reached the doors to the Headmaster's study, finding her mentor already standing outside and trying to reassure the students who had come to him to find out what was happening.

"Ah, Tyria," Atsphuria greeted her with a nod. "I don't suppose you have any insight as to -"

Suddenly, there was a massive explosion underneath them. The building shook around them, and the floor underfoot quaked and began to shift. Headmaster Atsphuria looked around in panic, before bringing his hands together as a mechanical-looking, golden magic circle appeared around them. "World Gear: Shield!" Atsphuria commanded, his left arm morphing into a purple/gold shield emitter, which projected a field of golden energy that scooped up Tyria and the other students around him.

With an almighty crack, the building toppled sideways, the floor pitching and walls upending and breaking apart. The roof broke away and fell towards the wizards, but collapsed into smaller chunks that fell around them as it made contact with the shield. Atsphuria winced with the strain.

"TechType: Force Field!" Tyria commanded, generating her own shield and synchronising it with her Headmaster's to strengthen it. The man shot her a grateful smile, before the floor slid out from underneath them, sending the group falling forwards towards the ground, two storeys below, as the building collapsed around them.

~P's E~

"Hit!" one of the commanding officers declared, grinning at the distortions in the air that betrayed the location of the invisible College. They had been firing missiles willy-nilly for hours, waiting for one to disappear through the shield and show them the location of the elusive College, which they had pinpointed by tracing the flight path of the Garuda. "Get the Jutsu Shiki wizards over here! We've found it!"

As one, a row of soldiers clad in red advanced and produced magic pens. They spoke and moved in unison, declaring, "Within this space, no enchantment that would render an object or being invisible or otherwise undetectable will function,"

~P's E~

The wizards of Phoenix's Eye, who had been woken by Grace and Fleur, had just left the building and were hovering outside a side entrance that Lync had brought them to, ready to fight, when they saw a missile arc above the campus grounds and explode against the base of the wing where Atsphuria's office was situated. Lync gasped in horror as the building collapsed. "Headmaster," he whispered, pressing a hand to his pocket for reassurance.

"Tyria was going that way," Grace realised.

Sarph took charge as the rubble settled. "Come on. I'm sure they survived that," he declared, starting to make his way towards the rubble when it suddenly exploded with golden light.

Headmaster Atsphuria emerged, a solemn look on his face, with his students, including Tyria, behind him. It didn't take long for the two groups to join, and he smiled briefly at the Fiorean wizards. "I'm glad to see you are all so willing to leap to our defence," he commented. "Come. We will make a stand in the front courtyard,"

Within minutes, the group reached the yard and halted in front of the main doors, joining with a larger mob of students.

At the far end of the courtyard, an army of Alvarez soldiers faced them, looking to be several hundred strong.

Resolute, Atsphuria strode to the front of the group, a stormy expression on his face. "Students of Electria! Today we face a cowardly foe who would slaughter us in our sleep. But we will not allow this! We are the beating heart of Electria, her soul incarnate that will never falter! Do not fear these agents of Alvarez; they may hurt our bodies, but they will never destroy our spirit!" he shouted, and the thunderous roar of affirmation that greeted his words from his students shook the college grounds. "And remember! This is our college, this is our home! Use it, and defend it! For the college! For Electria!"

As the crowd roared in approval, the elderly man turned and addressed the Phoenixes plus Lync. "Go, all of you. Get to your ship and make for Teslon. Lord Rolfe's plans need to be stopped," he commanded.

"No! I won't leave you! Not again!' Tyria immediately protested.

"Yeah. We aren't just going to abandon you," Pierce agreed, clenching his fist.

"If Rolfe's plan is not thwarted, and it is as dangerous as has been said, victory here will be meaningless. Tyria, I have burdened you with a great responsibility already, and I am sorry that I must ask you to take on another, but I must entrust you with saving us from this threat," Atsphuria explained.

Tyria nodded. "Alright. I suppose so . ." A hand rested on her shoulder. "Don't worry, we'll be right here with you," Pierce reassured her, and the rest of the Phoenixes chimed in with various expressions of agreement.

"I'll come too. Face it, you'd all be lost without me," Lync grinned.

"Very good. Go," the Headmaster commanded, and, with this approval, the Phoenixes left, breaking sideways towards the field where the Garuda was docked.

As Atsphuria's gaze turned back to the army before him, a look of such anger crossed his countenance that the people around him flinched. The aura of his magic power intensified, so much that everyone rapidly gave him a wide berth, as he began to chant. "The machinations of the universe are mine to command, I who has studied the clockwork of reality. I beseech Hephaestus, metalworker of the gods, join me with the gears that make the world turn so that I may protect all that I cherish! Gear Realignment: Tenth Stage!" A gear made of solid gold emerged from the ground as he spoke, before liquifying and entering his body. Golden/purple armour coated his body, lifting him into the air on giant mechanical legs, and massive metal arms flexed as glowing purple eyes fixed a condemning stare on the enemies, and Headmaster Gabriel Atsphuria, within his giant golden battle suit, roared, "World Gear Stage 10: Hephaestus' Fury!"

As they left, Tyria actually paused, staring in unbridled awe up at her mentor. "That's his ultimate magic. I've never seen it in person before," she whispered reverentially. "It's said that invoking Hephaestus' Fury gives the Headmaster power equal to that of a god," Lync agreed.

"People, we have to go," Sarph encouraged them, and, reluctantly, the two students turned and followed the Phoenixes to the Garuda, occasionally looking back and catching glimpses of Atsphuria leading his students in laying waste to the army.

They boarded the ship and Kit possessed it, immediately getting them into the air, as the two stood on the edge of the deck, still watching.

Pierce, misunderstanding their reason for not looking away, placed his hand on his guildmate's reassuringly. "Don't worry, they'll be just fine,"

"Oh, I know that," Tyria reassured him. "But it's a pretty rare occasion that the Headmaster goes all out. I don't want to miss a second,"

"You should have more faith in the College," Lync agreed, taking Tyria's other hand. "They'll be fine,"

~P's E~

The city of Teslon, capital of Electria, renowned world over as being the global centre of advancement.

Looking up at the towering, multicoloured spires that dominated the horizon as they walked towards the city, having deemed the Garuda too conspicuous and left it in a nearby forest, Pierce had to admit that it at least looked the part. The place really did seem like a paradise of learning and wonder . . until they got to the main gate, where a black Alvarez banner was flying, as well as several guards checking everyone.

"Don't worry, Grace, it'll be alright. Just try not to call attention to yourself," Pierce reassured the young Dragon Slayer.

To keep from drawing attention to themselves, Tyria and Lync had split off from the group to enter the city via other means, while the Phoenixes, posing as a group of tourists on holiday, entered through the main gate.

"And who are you lot?" a bored-looking guard asked.

"Tourists from Fiore," Pierce promptly replied.

"Move along,"

They walked through the gates, entering the city. "That was anticlimactic," Boomer observed.

"Indeed," Sarph nodded, creating an Archive screen with a complicated diagram on it. "I had an entire fictitious backstory mapped out and everything,"

Hare inquisitively glanced at the screen, before turning and slapping Sarph as a dark, demonic aura surrounded her. "You were going to say that _she_ was Totomaru's girlfriend?!" she demanded with eyes that, as a result of a peculiar trick of the light, seemed red and cartoonishly exaggerated for a second, while gesturing at Fleur, who blinked and cocked her head in surprise.

"Well, yes, their relationship has lots of chemistry," Sarph pointed out. "It's only a matter of time until their mutual affection and emotional bond blossoms into love,"

By this point, Fleur was blushing, and Pierce had no idea how Totomaru, walking briskly in front of them, had remained oblivious to the conversation. But that was nothing to the way that Hare was fuming. Her dark aura had reached the point that Pierce was wondering if the road underfoot was likely to spontaneously combust. "What the hell is that supposed to mean? I have so much more 'chemistry' with Totomaru than that skank!" She probably would have continued, but a blast of petals knocked her away and sent her flying to the other side of the street.

Fleur sheathed her rapier with a mischievous smile.

Before separating, Lync had given them a rendezvous point; that was where and when they would meet up with each other, and his contact.

The group stopped outside it now, looking up at a building coloured rusty orange, with lines of small windows and a roof that looked as though there had once been more to the building, but a divine hand had removed all traces of the uppermost floor with a scalpel. "This is the place," Sarph informed them.

They paused outside the door. "Should we wait for Lync and Tyria?" Boomer suggested. "This Kay guy doesn't know us. I think the idea was that Lync would be a go-between,"

"We can't just sit around," Pierce shook his head, stepping forwards and knocking on the front door.

There was a pause.

"Maybe no one's home," Totomaru observed.

That was when the stairs they were standing on fell away beneath them, sending the entire group plunging into darkness.

~P's E~

"Who are you? Why have you come here?" a deep voice asked.

Pierce struggled to get out from underneath a dazed Sarph. "What just happened?" he asked, looking around. Behind him, Boomer and Fleur had collapsed against the sides of the cage they were in, while, somehow, Hare had landed in Totomaru's lap - and didn't seem willing to leave. He noted with relief that Grace was absent, and hoped she was off somewhere trying to help.

"Are you agents of Alvarez? You certainly don't look Electrian - though that doesn't mean anything either, does it? Look at that bastard Lord Rolfe," the unknown man, who was tall, hulking and Electrian, with bright yellow hair and a dark coat, mused, glaring at his unwanted guests.

"We're from Fiore. We're friends with Tyria and Lync," Pierce informed him, finally getting out from beneath the unconscious S-Class. He reflected that Sarph was slipping if he'd been knocked out by that fall - then noticed the fact that his arm just so happened to be sprawled inches from the hilt of Solamion. Which meant he was probably faking and awaiting an opportunity to take their potential foe by surprise.

"Fiore, eh? That's interesting," Kay leant forwards. "So, I suppose you're in the same guild as Tyria, then?"

Pierce held up his hand, showing the Phoenix's Eye logo, while simultaneously gesturing to his blue shirt, also printed with the logo. Hare had enough presence of mind to twist around and show her own mark on the back of her neck.

"Not bad," Kay admitted, frowning. "But tattoos can be duplicated. How did you find me?"

"Lync gave us directions. He said he and Tyria would meet us here,"

"I'm afraid that won't be happening," Kay's frown grew more pronounced, and he pressed a button on a small piece of plastic in his hand. A screen behind him flickered on, and played a recording of what looked like some kind of news broadcast.

"Breaking news," the reporter, an Alvarez lady, declared. "Two traitors to the Alvarez empire were caught trying to sneak into our fair city of Teslon," Footage cut to a still, blurry image of Tyria and Lync using their respective spells to fly over the wall. "Upon arrival, they were immediately captured and taken for incarceration in the Council Headquarters,"

The footage stopped, and Kay turned his gaze back to the Phoenixes. "Awfully convenient that the people who would have vouched for you can't be here," he pointed out.

Pierce paled, realising that Tyria was in danger. And tried not to think about her being alone, in a cell, with only Lync for company . . . no! Keep it professional! Either way, he had to do something. "Let us out!" he demanded, leaping up and rattling the doors. "We have to help her!"

"I'm afraid that isn't likely. I'm not going to break my cover for the sake of a doomed rescue attempt," Kay shook his head. "And I also can't let any of you leave, or you might trade me to Alvarez for her. And that's assuming that you all aren't working for Alvarez to begin with,"

"We're not!" Pierce protested. "How can you be so selfish?" he demanded.

"Good instincts of self-preservation, I suppose," Kay shrugged dispassionately. "I want Electria to win the war, but I'd rather live under Alvarez than die for Electria. Don't worry, though. On the off chance Electria actually wins, I'll let you all out then,"

Pierce was about to protest this, but a thought struck him.

There was no particular reason why he couldn't use his magic. The cage seemed to be ordinary steel.

"I think we're getting out sooner than that," he smirked, and his flute appeared in a flash of Requip, and, before Kay could react, he played a rapid tune, reminiscent of a snake charmer.

With a hiss, Cubelios emerged, rapidly analysing her surroundings, before eyeing Pierce with an emerald iris. "Cubelios, use your acid breath on those bars," Pierce commanded.

While training with Cubelios, Pierce had discovered that she had more breath attacks than just poison gas. She was also capable of exhaling a mist of acid, a chemical that acted as a sleeping agent and spraying a flammable gas - unfortunately, that last one was rarely used because she had no way to ignite the gas, at least not by herself.

The acid, carefully directed, corroded the bars within seconds, and Pierce, hanging back until the attack dissipated, gestured. "Could you restrain him too?"

Obediently, Cubelios, who of course was immune to her own acid, lashed forwards with blinding speed and coiled herself around Kay, preventing him from making any moves, and Pierce set about getting the others up and moving.

Eventually the Phoenixes were extricating themselves from the cage. Pierce smiled at Cubelios, patting her head. "Thanks. Good job," and the snake shivered in pleasure.

"Alright," Sarph, who obviously had been faking and was totally up to speed with the situation, glared at Kay. "Where do we need to go to rescue Tyria?"

~P's E~

Tyria and Lync, bound in Vengestone cuffs with their hands behind their back, were uncomfortably dragged by several large Alvarez men through a series of corridors and staircases within the Grand Headquarters of the former High Council, the massive rainbow palace in the centre of Electria. Eventually, they stopped outside a pair of doors that put the ones outside Headmaster Atsphuria's office to shame, painted in a garish pattern of bronze and yellow.

They swung open, and the guards bustled the two prisoners inside, revealing a massive, long chamber with walls and arches made of exquisitely shaped curves of metal, matched by decorative sheets with iridescent sheens in every colour of the rainbow that cast brilliant hues of rainbow light all throughout the room from the massive glass ceiling above. The room was dominated by a large table made of solid platinum, with eight chairs seated around it.

However, the chair at the head of the table had been replaced with a high-backed bronze throne with yellow satin cushions that put the rest of the multicoloured chairs in the room to shame. The throne was also the only one that was occupied; the rest were barren, but it contained a dark-skinned, Electrian man of medium height with a shock of yellow hair and tinted, half-moon glasses that hid his eyes, languidly lounging in a bright yellow cloak with bronze trim in the throne. The man looked up in interest as the two prisoners were brought to a standstill at the far end of the table.

"You," Lync spat the word, glaring with unbridled hatred at the man before them.

"Indeed. It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Lync Volan. I have heard ever so much about you," the man simpered with an insincere smile, before focusing on Tyria. "And you. The errant daughter returns," he raised his eyebrows. "We meet at last. My name, as I suppose you might not be aware, is Lord High Protector Rolfe,"

Tyria didn't know much about Rolfe beyond the fact that he had been a member of the Electrian High Council before Alvarez invaded, and that he was a supporter of Alvarez who had been established as a puppet monarch. However, the expression on Lync's face as he clutched at his pocket told her everything she needed to know . . except why he kept patting his pocket. She had to ask him about that sometime.

"Well, even if you don't know much about me, having been away these last couple of years, I know plenty about you, Tyria," Rolfe assured her. "For example, I know that you were an only child and your mother died in an accident six years ago, while no one has heard from your father since the war began, which unfortunately means I do not have the liberty of using them as hostages," his countenance darkened at this, before lightening once more. "I know that after you joined Headmaster Atsphuria's College of Practical Education - which, incidentally, is one of a very small number of colleges that have continued to elude my troops," he irritably muttered, "Gabriel Atsphuria took you under his wing and came to see you as an adoptive daughter. I also know that nineteen months ago, you fled Electria at your Headmaster's insistence and sought refuge in Fiore, where you tried several times to get a job but failed at each attempt, and spent a miserable few months as a bandit under the alias of - what was it? The Shellshocker?"

Tyria reluctantly nodded, and Rolfe's smile grew imperceptibly wider. "I thought as much. I also know that just under six months ago, you retired from a life of crime and joined a wizarding guild. An unassuming little place called Phoenix's Eye. Is all that correct?"

"It is," Tyria admitted, and Rolfe grinned. "Good. Because that's not all I know. I know that, before you left, your beloved Headmaster entrusted you with something. A treasure chest of sorts known as the Electrian Compendium," he leered. "So, you see, there's only one thing I don't know. And that would be where _exactly_ you hid that Compendium,"

"And if you think I'm gonna tell you that, you got another think coming! I'd rather die than let you get your grubby hands on its secrets!" Tyria declared, glaring at this annoyingly smug man.

"Oh, but if you die, then no one will know where the Compendium is," Rolfe pointed out.

"Good," the tech wizard nodded. "Better that it remains lost forever than Alvarez gets it!" Lync grinned at her words.

"Oh dear. I was rather hoping you wouldn't be so brash," Rolfe sighed, rising from his seat and walking around the left side of the table towards them. "Come. There's something I would quite like to show you, Tyria," He regarded Lync with faint disdain. "I suppose you should come too. Though I have little interest in a former member of those upstart Vexos . . hmm. Have a ship prepared. I rather think the Vestal government would be very happy to have you in their custody once more,"

Tyria blinked and raised an electric-blue eyebrow at Lync, who shrugged. "Tell ya later?"

The guards suddenly began to bustle them forwards once again as Rolfe left the room, leading them through the Grand Headquarters once more as Tyria processed this revelation. "Wait, so do you know Mylene Farrow?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at Lync.

The salmon-haired Vestal raised his eyebrows in shock. "Mylene? How do you know _her_?"

"I beat her up two months ago," Tyria shrugged.

Lync rolled his eyes. "That's Mylene alright," He twisted in his bonds to get a closer look at Tyria. "Tell me you smashed that butt-ugly Macubass thing,"

"Sure did. I stole her coat too," his schoolmate grinned, and Lync chuckled. "Good. She had it coming,"

~P's E~

Eventually, the party stopped outside a door. "I very much hope that what you're about to see will change your mind," Rolfe admitted. "I want you to join us, Tyria. The might of the Alvarez Empire is unstoppable, it's only a matter of time until the entire world bows to Emperor Spriggan. And no secret can remain buried forever, either. No matter what backwoods place you hid the Compendium, it will eventually be found. But besides, I would much prefer to have someone like you on our side. You could do your country a great service under Alvarez,"

"Any aid I could give Electria would be nothing compared to the suffering I'd put it through if I helped Alvarez conquer it," Tyria spat.

"Well said," Lync approvingly chorused.

Rolfe mulled this over, and shrugged. "You'll change your tune when you see this," he declared, swinging open the door and leading the party inside.

Tyria gasped as she took in the sight that towered above them. At first, she thought it was a massive yellow building, but buildings didn't have rockets mounted on the sides or what looked like a bronze submarine attached to it. It took a while to place where she'd seen it before, because she'd only ever heard of machines like this in books, never in reality.

She was staring at a massive rocket.

"Impressive, isn't it? And we're only a scant day or so from launch," Rolfe explained.

Lync frowned. "I don't get it," he admitted, rubbing his pocket. "Rockets are built to go into space. What could you possibly want in space?"

"Oh, it's quite simple, really. As primitive as Fiorean magic is, it does produce the occasional feat that even we Electrians find impressive. One of the most noteworthy of these is a certain orbital weapon,"

It didn't take long for Tyria to remember hearing that before. "That, uh, thing that the Magic Council uses in times of emergency? The - right! The Satellite Square: Etherion?"

"Yes, that. A magic weapon of such power that it can annihilate entire cities with a single blast. And is is completely immune to tampering, because it is up in space, where no one can reach it," Rolfe smiled wickedly at the thought. "At least, that's the theory,"

"You're going to hijack Etherion," Tyria whispered in horror.

"And once I have an orbital superweapon at my disposal, your puny resistance will be crushed within a matter of hours," Rolfe crowed, before looking down at Tyria. "So, what do you say now?" he asked.

'I've gotta destroy that rocket,' the wizard realised. 'But I can't do it alone,' she thought. 'Who do I know that's good at destroying things?'

Her eyes widened, and slid to the pink guild mark on her shoulder, and she almost chuckled. She was part of one of the most destructive guilds in Fiore and Electria alike. And several of its best and brightest wizards were in the city at that moment. All she needed to do was signal them, and for that, she had to be free. The cuffs were Vengestone, but they didn't look very thick . .

Rolfe was taken entirely by surprise when, using her legs, Tyria launched herself into the air, backflipped, and as she came down, slammed her wrists hard into the ground, putting all the weight of her body and the force of her momentum into the impact. At this, the rocky cuffs cracked, and broke, shattering around her hands as she landed ungraciously on her back. Hooray for budget cuts and limited Vengestone supplies.

In a fluid motion, she leapt to her feet and stared down Lord Rolfe. "No deal, mister," she declared, snatching Lync's wrists with her left and and invoking, "TechType: Tectonics!" with her right. A single blow destroyed the wooden door, and then they were out of the courtyard and running back down the corridor. Lync winced as, as they ran, Tyria yanked his arm upwards and swung her still-transformed fist, but he let out a small gasp as the expertly aimed metal club smashed his cuffs into pieces too.

"We should split up," the boy immediately suggested.

"Agreed. I'm not really sure which way leads to the exit," the Electrian admitted, and they paused, coming to a junction. "If you get out before me, find the rest of Phoenix's Eye. Tell them about the rocket and that they have to destroy it,"

"Can they do that?" the Vestal asked, and Tyria grinned. "We're Phoenixes. We burn everything down as we rise into the sky," she quoted, before dashing down the left-hand passage. "Try not to die!"

Lync, blushing a little and rubbing his hand where she had touched him, nodded. Footsteps from behind him warned him that Lord Rolfe was in pursuit, and, reasserting himself by quickly rubbing his pocket, flew down the corridor to the right.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **It bugs me that, for the sake of plot progression, I ended up having to get Tyria captured again. This is supposed to be an arc that focuses on her character and her strengths, damnit. She's not a damsel in distress! -,- Hopefully the last few paragraphs, and the stunt she pulls next chapter, will make up for it.**

 **So, Lord Rolfe. The overarching villain of the Electria arc finally appears. I considered bringing in a member of the Spriggan 12, but after Seilah showed up in Sonic Boom, it didn't really sit right with me, because Seilah was and is way too powerful for Phoenix's Eye to beat at present. She was playing with Sarph and Grace, the two strongest members of the team, like toys, and Grace had to nuke her with reality magic to win - and even that didn't technically defeat her. It circumvented her magic/Curses and atomised her body. It wasn't a 'real' victory. No, there is no practical way that Team Pierce could face off with even one member of the 12 and not get themselves killed. So I came up with an OC.**

 **But as for his character design? I was kind of going with an 'evil Albus Dumbledore' vibe. But, more than that, Lord Rolfe is the thematic antithesis of Gabriel Atsphuria. He's everything that Headmaster Atsphuria is, only twisted and perverted into evil. Where the Headmaster wants to use magic and technology alike for kind and selfless reasons, Rolfe only cares about furthering his own progression in the hierarchy of Alvarez. Gabriel Atsphuria is like a father to Tyria, but Rolfe is her worst nightmare.**

 **And while on that topic, I did make one distinction that I think everyone should be aware of; Atsphuria's World Gear is gold and purple. Tyria's TechType is silver and blue, and Lync's Airnvention is silver and green. However, Rolf's DeStructure is bronze and yellow. Just a neat bit of symbolism I threw in. XD Peace!**


	38. Mark Infinity

Chapter 38: Mark Infinity

Team Pierce (plus Totomaru, plus Fleur, minus Tyria) stared up at the multicoloured building of the Grand Headquarters. Kay had been convinced to tell them that this was the most likely place for Tyria and Lync to be, and given them directions. He had, however, refused to accompany them, melodramatically claiming that they were all going to die.

The Headquarters was as old as Teslon itself, and was considered by the locals to be a monument to the history of Electria itself; no part of the building was ever allowed to be demolished, and any damage had to be repaired exactly the way it had been. This ingenious and colourful concept had led to the building becoming a hodgepodge mishmash of hundreds of years' worth of architectural evolution, and colourful neon towers stood alongside primitive wooden walls as both were rivalled by stately red brick and reinforced grey concrete, all within meters of each other.

"That's one hell of a building," Totomaru observed.

"Tyria and Lync are somewhere inside. What should the plan be?" Pierce asked Sarph, who shrugged. "We need a plan? The walls in those older parts don't look too solid, and it's a big building, but not _that_ big. If we bust our way in, it shouldn't take long to find Tyria. And we could probably thwart this Rolfe person's plan while we're at it,"

Fleur whistled to get their attention. "What is it?" Pierce asked, and she mimed something. "She wants to know what we're planning to do about the dozens of guards no doubt inside the building," Totomaru translated. "Which is a good question,"

Pierce and Sarph simultaneously raised eyebrows, glanced at each other, Hare and Grace, as well as Kit, who had materialised, before three of them chuckled while Kit and Hare outright laughed. Boomer cracked a grin too. "No, seriously. What's the problem?" the Tamer asked.

The Petal wizard exasperatedly pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head. "Remind me why, out of all the practical, sensible guilds there are in Fiore, you wanted to join the one that thinks taking on an army isn't a problem?" Totomaru quietly asked.

Eventually, with the plan set, the seven wizards (plus yokai) stood outside the wall. "Grace, would you like to do the honours?" Pierce suggested.

Grace looked at him in excitement. "No way, again?"

"Why not?" the Tamer shrugged, and Grace beamed. "Best holiday ever!" she shrieked.

"Remember, angle your shot so that the debris will go outward and downward, that way you'll hit any enemies on the other side of the wall," Sarph advised her.

Totomaru, who, after the incident that left him dangling from the roof of the guild hall, had steered well clear of Grace's training sessions and thus had no idea what they were talking about. "What are you . ."

The Reality Dragon Slayer inhaled, before jumping into a pocket of bent reality and reappearing several metres above them. "Reality Dragon's Roar!" she screamed, blasting a funnel of grey energy from her mouth which passed over the heads of her guildmates and obliterated the wall before them, breaking it into chunks that exploded inwards and leaving a massive gash in the side of the fortifications.

Grace landed and looked around at her teammates, ignoring Fleur's wide eyes and Totomaru's slack jaw. "How'd I do?"

"Nine out of ten," Pierce promptly responded with a smile.

"I dunno. You did leave a lot of uneven rubble that it'll be a pain to try to walk through . . seven and a half," Boomer shrugged.

Totomaru stared at them. "You're encouraging this?" he demanded.

"Yes," Sarph replied, leading the charge into the fortifications. Pierce hung back, grasping the fire wizard's wrist. "I am encouraging teaching an inexperienced little girl with more potential for destruction than anyone should have to destroy exclusively uninhabited buildings in a safe and practical way that leads to them being easily rebuilt," he elaborated.

"At least there's a method to your madness . . but you still couldn't teach her not to destroy buildings at all?" Totomaru deadpanned as they ran to catch up, and Pierce shot him a scandalised look. "Now why would I want to do that?" he grinned.

"Nevermind. Just madness after all," the man sighed, shaking his head and making his white fohawk bristle.

As might be expected, dozens of soldiers had congregated on the attacking guild wizards as soon as they entered, and as was equally easy to expect, the Phoenixes blew them away with ease. Boomer repelled them with impermeable waves of sound while Grace, Fleur and Hare's physical assaults eliminated them one by one, and the few that were armed with magic were easily dispatched by Sarph. With sticky orange fire in one hand and slippery green in the other, Totomaru eagerly joined in and started wreaking havoc amongst the enemy soldiers, while Pierce summoned Raya and mopped up stragglers from above.

"My sword is the Spell-Shattering Sigil Sola-" Sarph paused, realising the soldier he was talking to was already out for the count. "My sword is the Spell -" Once again, he realised that he had defeated the grunt before he could even finish the sentence. "My sword -" This one simply screamed and ran. "Will none of you fight me for long enough that I can explain how I am defeating you?!" Sarph demanded of the soldiers, half of which turned and fled at his angered shout..

Totomaru, who had managed to get himself near the main entrance while fighting off a trio of soldiers, paused after defeating them, hearing a clatter of approaching men that sounded like it was coming from within the main entrance. He braced himself and flattened himself against the the main entrance, waiting to ambush the oncoming reinforcements as a flash of light shone from within the hall.

And kept waiting.

And waited some more.

Finally, he realised something had happened, and peered into the corridor. Nothing. It was empty. "Strange," he frowned, rejoining the fight.

Eventually, they all recongregated in the central courtyard. "I told you it wouldn't be a problem," Sarph smirked knowingly at Fleur, who silently tched.

"Come on. We gotta find Tyria," Pierce encouraged the group. "And Lync," he hastily added.

"Indeed we do," Sarph agreed with a knowing smile. "We should split up. Usual teams," he declared, grasping Boomer's arm as his Aera wings manifested. Pierce grinned, recalling Raya. "I spy a door," he declared, and he and Grace sped towards what looked like the main entrance to the building's interior, as Sarph and Boomer lifted off, making for a high window in the large purple tower that crowned the left side of the Headquarters.

The three remaining wizards looked at one another, and Hare growled. "Oh, _brilliant_ ,"

~P's E~

Tyria pelted down the corridor, hearing footsteps in pursuit. A quick glance over her shoulder told her that Lord Rolfe was in hot pursuit, and a sickly yellow magic circle had appeared around his arm. "DeStructure: Flamethrower!" he declared, and his right arm erupted in bronze and yellow metal with a concentric nozzle.

Tyria squeaked as a blast of heat seared her backside and redoubled her speed. She dashed around a corner, seeing a door directly in front of her, and pushed it open without breaking her stride.

Porcelain squeaked under her feet, and she skidded to a halt, looking around. Colourfully painted walls, large, open space, stained glass, porcelain floor? She was in some kind of banquet hall.

"Flamethrower!" Tyria frantically leapt out of he way as Rolfe's weapon scorched her. She frantically blew on her right hand, which, while escaping the worst of the heat, had blistered, and span to face Rolfe as he emerged from the door. "Give it up, Tyria," he commanded. His dark eyes twinkled menacingly as he rattled his Flamethrower. "You can't beat me,"

With a couple of mental commands to her magic, Tyria brought up the settings screen to one of her spells, and made a couple of quick alterations to the coding for her Tectonics, before copying it and saving it as a new attack. It would be clumsy - she'd never made up a new spell on the fly during a fight before, and didn't recommend it - but functional. In the meanwhile, she tensed her shoulder blades and invoked; "TechType: Jetpack!" Her massive turbines unfolded and lifted her a few feet into the air, but Rolfe strode forward and used his free hand to grasp her leg and pull.

Tyria strained with all her might to stay in the air, but, somehow, Rofle was much stronger than he looked, and in spite of her machinery's protests, she was dragged downwards.

And then Rolfe reached inside her right turbine, grasped one of the fan blades, stopping its rotation, before forcibly tearing it out of its housing and holding the piece of metal, with sparking wires from inside her own body trailing from it, in front of her face.

The pain was unbearable. The wizard dropped to the ground, screaming, and feeling as though one of her fingers had just been pulled out of its socket by brute force alone. Her Jetpack vanished, Rolfe's grisly trophy disintegrating into ethernano, and she slumped to the ground, trying desperately not to cry out again.

Snatching the hem of her vest, under her chin, Rolfe lifted Tyria up and stared into her eyes, jamming his flamethrower underneath her chin. "Do you still think you can stand against the might of the Alvarez Empire?" he demanded.

Tyria squeezed her eyes shut and thought about all the pain that Rolfe would inflict on her people, on Electria, and on her friends, if she couldn't stop him here and now, using the thought to bury the lingering pain from the destruction of her Jetpack. With that in mind, she worked up a globule of liquid from within her throat, resting it on her tongue, before spitting in his face.

Rolfe narrowed his eyes menacingly as her saliva dropped off her cheek, before shaking his arm to activate his flamethrower. Tyria had just enough time to whisper, "TechType: Helmet," before the fire washed over her mechanised face, licking at the metal and singeing her hair.

In utter contempt, Rolfe threw her away, and, limply, the girl slid along the ground, coming to rest several feet away. Tyria struggled to her feet as her face and Rolfe's flamethrower both reverted to flesh. She guessed she wouldn't have a use for that modified Tectonic spell after all.

"I don't understand it. Why do you persist?" Rolfe demanded as he advanced on her. "You could have wealth, fame, power. All it would take would be for you to surrender, join us, reveal the location of the Compendium to me, and you would be hailed as a hero among the Alvarez Empire. Why do you throw away your life like this?"

"You really don't get it, do you?" Tyria retorted, pressing a hand over the guild mark on her shoulder. "This _is_ my life. I've devoted everything that I am to Electria, to my college and my guild, and to my friends in both of them. If I just up and abandoned them," she cracked her knuckles, clenching her fists, before swinging her arms outwards and adopting a pose. "Then my life itself would be meaningless! Gear Change!" she invoked as her hair stiffened into silver spikes and electricity played through it. "Mark II!"

"So stubborn," Rolfe sighed, as another magic circle appeared. "DeStructure: Wrecking Ball," His left hand changed into a large chain, which coiled at his feet and ended in a large lead ball. He scooped up the chain with his right hand, letting it trail between his fingers, before swinging the ball in a wide arc towards Tyria. In response, the younger wizard jumped, carefully clearing the ball as it swung past her.

Continuing the arc of the ball's swing, Rofle brought it up, above his head, before swinging it down towards Tyria, and she leapt backwards, letting the ball smash into the floor. Deep cracks spiderwebbed through the floor from point of impact, and, as Rolfe retracted the spell, realising that his foe was too agile to be hit with such a clumsy weapon, Tyria invoked one of her own. "TechType Mark II: Forty-Eight Peg Gear Blitzkrieg!" she called, manifesting her massive gears on her arms and powering forwards.

"DeStructure: Laser Cutter!" Rolfe retorted, manifesting a blade of yellow energy emitting from a bronze/yellow generator, and bringing it across his body to block as Tyria's massive gears smashed into it. The two powered against one another for a moment, Tyria's wild fury clashing against Rolfe's terse, controlled anger, before she was knocked away.

Tyria panted, frowning. 'That didn't even faze him,' she realised in horror, before looking back at Rolfe. Her eyes widened, as, even though he hadn't moved, he had been forced back, his rigid heels carving gashes in the cracked porcelain floor. The sight gave her new hope, and she grinned.

"I still don't know why you think you can defeat me," Rofle commented, swinging his Laser Cutter as he advanced.

"Because," Tyria panted, electric blue eyes meeting his. "I'm a student of Headmaster Atsphuria's. I'm a wizard of the Phoenix's Eye guild. And, together, those mean the world to me. But you, you're a pawn of some faceless emperor you've never even met. I don't care if you're stronger, because I've got so much more to fight for. So I'm gonna beat you, for the sake of everything I care about," she grinned, clenching her fists and twisting imaginary dials in mid-air. "Gear Change, Mark III!" Once again, the corona of a Gear Change enveloped her body, and white tattoos of interlocking gears covered her arms and legs. Her recent tweaks worked, though, and this time her combat trousers survived.

"It doesn't matter how many gears you cycle through. Compared to me, they're all equivalent to zero," Rolfe tched.

"We'll see," Gears began to appear around her, swarming and connecting to form the shape of massive wings that lifted Tyria into the air. She pressed her arms together, as dozens of energy charges built up in her wings, uniting and merging as she prepared a single blast to win her the fight. "TechType Mark III: Redacted Variable Hyperlaser!" A massive blast of blue energy lanced from her body and shot towards Rolfe in the space of a second, erupting with a massive explosion that sent the fallen councilman flying backwards. Tyria landed, metal wings still spread beneath her and giving her the appearance of an angel as the smoke cleared.

"Is that the best you can do?" Rolfe emerged from the miasma, looking rather singed but undeterred. "Because, if that's all that your convictions and all that you have to fight for give you, it obviously just isn't enough,"

Tyria paled. The Redacted Variable Hyperlaser was a refined, focused version of her other Mark III spell, the Sixty-Four Pulse Kinetic Air Raid. It was the strongest single attack she had . . and it hadn't been enough.

"I thought as much. DeStructure: Fracking Drill," Rolfe invoked, and, from the elbow down, his arms changed into bronze/yellow machines that looked like Tyria's Tectonics on steroids. With a mighty leap, he jumped up to the roof, before kicking off the ceiling and bringing both arms down on the girl in a single, massive, impact.

The crash rocked the entire building around them, and shattered the floor like glass, sending Tyria and Rolfe alike plunging downwards into the basement. Her wings shattered and dissipated, and Tyria lay on the ground amidst the debris falling from above as Rolfe landed in a crouch, his transformation reverting.

The dust settled around them as Rolfe stared at Tyria for a long moment. "Just as I thought," Rolfe finally spoke, exhaling. "You really are nothing,"

He turned and was about to walk away, when he heard struggling.

Tyria was forcing herself to her feet, no matter the pain that raced through her battered body. "No," she retorted. "I don't care if I'm not strong enough to beat you . . . it doesn't mean that I'll just lie down and accept defeat!"

Rolfe tched. "You really want me to kill you, don't you?"

The tech wizard paused, looking around. She was surrounded by wires and monitors and glowing lights, which plastered every wall around her. "What is this place, anyway?"

"Amusing that one such as you, who claims to love her country so much, doesn't know," the Lord High Protector observed. "This is one of the central hubs of the Teslon power grid. Not that that matters much; it's an equally suitable place for your death as the ballroom up above. De-Structure: Bulldozer!" With that, he flung himself forwards and delivered a smashing two-handed blow with morphed metal fists that sent Tyria flying backwards, collapsing against the wall with its pulsating wires.

The girl groaned. Surely it wouldn't be too unforgivable if she just took a little rest? Falling asleep just seemed like such an inviting prospect right now . . . but there was this annoying buzzing that was keeping her awake. Groggily, she looked around, searching for the source of the noise, and realised it was coming from the power cables around her.

Power cables . . . an idea drifted into Tyria's mind . . . it had to take a hell of a lot of juice to power a city . . . and that was exactly what she needed right now.

"This is honestly a little sad . . not enough so to stop me from doing it, but I'll feel a little bit bad about your death after you're gone," Rolfe admitted, but then he paused. "What are you doing?"

Tyria was knotting her feet into the cables. Her hands too, next. She could feel the power surging through them as soon as her foot made direct contact with the magic wiring, energy and information flowing into her body, and the feed's intensity redoubled when her second foot joined the party. As Tyria integrated herself more and more with the power grid, the information flowed into her system at an incredible, incapacitatable rate, and it was all she could do to regulate it, control it, stop it from overwhelming her system . . and to use it.

Now she had the gist of it. Shaping and coordinating the data that was flowing into her from the entire city, Tyria coded, and coded more, but there was too much information and not enough time, there was practically an infinity pouring into her from the entire city - and maybe that was exactly what she needed!

Rolfe' eyes widened as he realised what was happening. "She's merging herself with the power grid for the _entire_ _city_!" he gasped. So much magic energy in a single being's body . .

"Gear Change!" Tyria shrieked, and, in her state of partial fusion with Teslon itself, her voice echoed through the whole city. "Mark I-I-I-INFINITY!" Her dark skin, still inlaid with white tattoos, rippled and phase-shifted, changing into blue steel with matching silver patterns of iron that pulsed with the electricity running through the wiring that had infused her bloodstream. Inside her metal chest, her heart pulsed, sending waves of power throughout her body.

Outside, in the city, one by one, the lights began to flicker out. First it was a single building, then a block, then a whole district, and before long the entire city had gone dark.

And all of that power was now coursing through Tyria's mechanised veins, as the cables and her clothing fell away from her, unable to retain their consistency in the sheer radiance of the power emanating from the wizard, and, glowing with millions of gigawatts' worth of energy, she levitated into the air, glaring with spotlight-like blue irises at Rolfe, who actually recoiled, seeing what she had become.

With mechanical precision, Tyria raised her arm and concentrated the accumulated power of the whole city of Teslon into it, pointed directly at Rolfe. "TechType Mark Infinity!" she shrieked in a voice tinged with synthesised tones. "Hyper-Accelerated Electric Particle Warhead; Large Hadron!"

It's impossible to accurately describe what happened next, for that would require an understanding of the world far beyond what humans have attained to date. A glowing white singularity of power erupted from her body, seeming to take hours and yet no time at all as it traversed the short distance between the opponents, shining with such bright radiance that the sun would have seemed weak by comparison if it had been in view. And then it impacted, detonating in an explosive supernova of blinding white that blew away the surroundings, sending debris in every direction and throwing Rolfe into the air where, moments before, there had been a ceiling, and sending him flying off out of sight.

Tyria dropped to the ground and landed on her feet. Popups appeared in her vision, informing her that the new Gear and the associated spell had been saved to her magic's internal system. In spite of exhausting the vast majority of the power she had accumulated from the power grid when she had used the Large Hadron spell, she still had more than enough left over to keep herself going for the time being. She looked down at herself - and, if her cheeks hadn't been made of blue metal at the time, she would have blushed. "And I thought Mark III had drawbacks . ."

Her clothing had been completely obliterated by the burst of power she had released. Not even shreds remained . . but, if she was honest with herself, there wasn't really much to be embarrassed over at present. Her entire body was currently made of metal, which . . covered everything surprisingly well, and the Mark Infinity spell didn't seem likely to wear off in the near future . . which meant she had to take advantage of it. A certain rocket needed to be destroyed.

But first she at least needed to find a spare shirt or something. Being made of metal was all good and well, but imagine if Pierce saw her like this.

. . Not that she particularly cared if Pierce, as opposed to any other boy she knew, saw her like this! - she would be equally embarrassed if Lync, for example, saw her this way. For sure.

A thought struck her, and she suddenly realised that Rolfe had to have gotten a 'good view' while she blew him up. Well, now she was just even more determined to smash his rocket.

As she scrambled her way out of the wreckage and back up into the dining hall, Tyria, her arm acting on autopilot, tore a chunk of aluminium wire from what had been the roof, placed it in her mouth and chewed, swallowing it.

~P's E~

Totomaru had a sweat drop so large that, if it were not imaginary, it would weigh almost as much as the woman draped over him.

Not long after leaving the group, he, Hare and Fleur had run into a small contingent of soldiers. No problem, right?

Except that one of them had dealt a lucky blow to Hare's head, and the Speed wizard was now unconscious. As Fleur feared for her life should Hare wake to find her carrying her, it had fallen to Totomaru to carry the unfortunate woman.

Fleur strode ahead as he lagged behind, and the fact that they seemed to have already taken out all of the soldiers in the area contributed to enough peace and quiet that it gave Totomaru a good chance to think.

It wasn't that he was unaware of Hare's feelings for him, she was _painfully_ obvious about it. But . . he didn't like her in the same way, and didn't think he ever would.

But he could hardly tell her that! It was Hare, one of the most ferocious and psychopathic wizards in Phoenix's Eye! . . Granted, recent events had made him wonder if he and Fleur were the only sane wizards in the guild, but that made his point all the more apparent. How was he supposed to let her down without making her go ballistic?

"I suppose if the worst comes to the worst, Juvia and Gajeel can put in a good word for me with Fairy Tail's master," the fire wizard muttered, and decided that for the time being, he would muddle through and hope for the best.

Slung over his shoulder, Hare cracked an eye open and inwardly grinned. Her plan to pretend to be unconscious and make Totomaru carry her was genius!

Suddenly, there was a flare of blue light in the corridor before them, and a blue shape smashed through the wall in front of Fleur, powering across the corridor and continuing in the same direction.

Fleur reared back and blinked, before turning to Totomaru and shrugging, before using sign language to communicate the fact that she thought that looked an awful lot like Tyria.

"Well, if it was her, she's sure in a hurry for some reason," Totomaru commented, rushing forwards and beckoning. "Come on, we gotta catch up,"

~P's E~

Pierce and Grace ran through the building, searching desperately for any sign of their friends. They had searched the upper levels and were rushing down the stairs at present - when, suddenly, they had to stop. A massive hole had been forced through the building, cutting away the stairs beneath them.

"Whoa. What did this?" Pierce asked, and the Dragon Slayer paused, sniffing. "It smells like Tyria,"

The Tamer almost did a double-take, staring at the greenette. "Seriously? Tyria did this? I knew she's been getting stronger, but . . wow,"

"She probably just didn't have time to go around all the pesky walls. I feel like that all the time," Grace pointed out, carefully jumping down into the tunnel.

Pierce joined her, still shocked. "Yeah, but it's one thing to teleport through walls, quite another to smash them," he reasoned.

"Well, tell her off when we catch up to her. Let's go!" Grace declared, running off. Pierce was about to follow, but heard footsteps. He turned to see Totomaru, Fleur and Hare (who was still feigning unconsciousness) rushing towards him. "Come on!" he beckoned.

~P's E~

"What the hell is that thing?" Boomer asked, gazing up at Lord Rolfe's rocket. As a Fiorean born and bred, the idea of a rocket was outside his comprehension and he had never heard of any such thing. "Extremely weird modern architecture?"

"According to my Archive, it's a rocket. Built to go into outer space," Sarph briefly explained. The two were standing on the fringes of the courtyard where the machine had been built, and trying to determine if it was a threat.

"Space? Why would anyone want to go there?" the Sound wizard asked in confusion, and his S-Class teammate shrugged. "I don't know,"

Sarph paused, looking up at the scaffolding surrounding the rocket. "Hey, there's someone up there!"

High above them, on the opposite side of the courtyard, Lord Rolfe was scrabbling through the scaffolding's maintenance platforms, trying desperately to get into the rocket before Tyria caught up with him. He had just reached the top platform when there was an explosion from the section of the court to the two Phoenixes' left.

"TechType Mark Infinity: Sixty-Four Pulse Kinetic Air Raid!" Tyria, still in full metal Mark Infinity mode, but having procured a coat and a pair of shorts, shouted, as the massive gear wings of her Mark III form manifested out of raw energy and unleashed a barrage of laser pulses, which tore through the lower level of the supports that Rolfe was standing on.

However, even as the scaffolding collapsed underneath him, Rolfe leapt through the door, pressing himself into the seat and rapidly manipulating the controls to initiate take-off.

The rocket rumbled, as its engines burst to life. Tyria, hovering in place, 's glass-coated eyes widened in fear. "No!" she shrieked, charging another attack, aimed directly at the rocket. "TechType Mark Infinity: Redacted Variable Hyperlaser!" A piercing lance of blue energy burst from her outstretched arms, arcing towards the rocket in a destructive pulse - and, as the rocket jerked upwards, it passed harmlessly underneath the vehicle, disappearing into the plumes of flame that were being funnelled into a dispersion tunnel system beneath the city.

"Tyria!" Boomer shouted as he and Sarph rushed towards her. "What's going on?"

The mechanised girl shot them a brief glance, before shaking her head and shouting, "I'll explain later. Destroy the rocket!"

"Ah, small problem with that," Sarph pointed out, gesturing to the rocket, which, even now, was flying up into the sky, steadily gaining speed.

At this point, the rest of the Phoenixes caught up, and the teen tire group was reunited, sans Lync. "Tyria, what -" Pierce trained off, taking in her current appearance. "Wow, that is cool,"

"Flatter me later," Tyria smiled weakly, feeling the exhaustion, but commanding her body not to give up on her just yet. "That rocket needs to be stopped,"

And, with that, she coated her wings in blue energy, before rocketing upwards in pursuit of the spaceship. With bated breath, her teammates watched her go, and, as she flew, the magic energy shielding her body flared out behind her in a trail of light. Watching Tyria fly in pursuit above them, it was almost as though she were a mighty, azure phoenix.

"Okay, now I really want to know what's going on," Boomer commented, and the whole group looked away as new footsteps approached. "Figures you lot would all be in the last place I look," Lync groaned, finally catching up. "But don't worry. I can fill you all in on everything you missed,"

A/N

 **A/N**

 **Man, that opening scene . . Grace is a twisted little girl. XD Hare's probably a bad influence. XD**

 **No. It simply is not possible for Tyria to come up with a powerful attack that has less than five words in its name.**

 **Seriously, though; her ultimate attack - and Large Hadron is her ultimate attack, in the same way that Urano Metrion is Lucy's ultimate attack - 's full name is the TechType Mark Infinity: Hyper-Accelerated Electric Particle Warhead; Large Hadron. That's a 10-word, 25-syllable phrase, which single-handedly takes up an entire row of text on my device, that she has to shout out every time she uses it. Long attack names are one of the defining traits of TechType magic, but even I think that's pushing it. XD And yes, like how Lucy spent a while unable to invoke Urano Metrion on her own, it will be a while before Tyria has the strength to even try to use it without fusing with an entire city's magic reserves. (And I think that merging with Teslon is a way better reason to prematurely unlock a super-attack than Hibiki spontaneously teaching Lucy it with 'Hyper-Magic'. That never sat well with me.)**

 **Oh, and yes, I did name it after the Large Hadron Collider.**

 **I suppose I should mention the Redacted Variable Hyperlaser as well . . basically, the Sixty-Four Pulse Kinetic Air Raid works best when targeting a group. It only worked against Mylene because she can block individual attacks, but not a large series of attacks all launched at once. However, the Hyperlaser is, as a general rule, more effective against individual targets. It's like, the Air Raid is sixty-four small attacks that are all 1/64 the strength of the Hyperlaser, which is a single attack that is 64 times as strong as any one of the blasts from the Air Rald.**

 **Anyway. I really hope you all enjoyed what I believe was Tyria's best fight scene yet. I spent a long time trying to get it just right, and I'm pretty satisfied with the result. I hope you all agree. ^^**

 **That, plus more love triangle fluff. XD Peace!**


	39. An Alternative End

Chapter 39: An Alternative End

"He plans to hijack the Satellite Square - Etherion?" Sarph gasped in horror.

Totomaru blanched. "That . . isn't possible, right? I mean, Etherion is owned by the Magic Council. There have to be . . defences, safeguards, a kill switch! Something!"

"Etherion is in space . . everyone thought that would be enough to keep it safe!" Sarph protested. "Only the Magic Council can fire it remotely, and - and everyone thought that no one would be crazy enough to try to get up there and activate it manually!"

"So, what you're saying is, that Tyria is alone up there and she's the only one who can do anything about this situation. And if she fails, the entire world is going to be held hostage by a madman with a stolen superweapon," Pierce's frustration worked its way into his tone. It wasn't that he thought Tyria couldn't handle it. But he hated sitting on the sidelines.

"Not necessarily. I think we have a way to go after them," Lync grinned.

"I hope you aren't talking about the Garuda," Sarph raised an eyebrow. "Because she won't be able to get into space, no matter what we do to her,"

"The Garuda's a her now?" Grace frowned, but her question went unanswered as Lync pressed a hand to his pocket. "No, I got another plan," He reached into his pocket, and withdrew a small, silver and green metal sphere, which he grasped between his fingers.

"What's that?" Boomer asked, but Sarph raised his eyebrows and Fleur hummed with interest, her silver hair swishing as she nodded with approval. "That's a Bakugan. A Mechanical one, no less," the S-Class man noticed.

Pierce blinked. "Wait. I thought that only members of those Vexos jerks had Mechanical Bakugan, because only their scientists knew how to make them,"

Lync groaned, throwing his arms up into the air. "Fine, you got me. I used to be part of the Vexos, alright?"

Several members of the group gasped in surprise. Sarph, though, seemed unperturbed. "I thought that might be the case," he admitted.

"Wait, then shouldn't you be in jail?" Grace asked - somewhat rudely, but it was forgivable under the circumstances.

"Yes and no," Lync shrugged. "I did some bad stuff in King Zenoheld's name, I'll admit it, but when the King started plotting world domination, it didn't sit right with me. I knew those Battle Brawler guys would be able to stop him if only they could hear about what he was planning, so I stole a copy of the plans for his Alternative Weapons System and defected to the Brawlers. After we trashed the Alternative, the Brawlers got my name cleared, but public opinion in Vestal wasn't looking too kindly on me, so Alice, one of the aforementioned Brawlers, suggested I move to Electria, where she lived, and join her college. I've been a student at Atsphuria's since,"

The Phoenixes considered this, and Pierce shrugged. "Good enough for me. Anyway, you were saying?"

"Hold on! We're just gonna accept that? He's a war criminal!" Hare spontaneously protested, and Totomaru blinked. "Weren't you unconscious a second ago?"

"So's Tyria," Pierce pointed out, though this didn't seem to mollify the Speed wizard. However, Sarph sternly asked; "Do I have to gag you again?" and Hare shut up.

"Anyway. Lemme demonstrate. Bakugan, brawl!" Lync declared, throwing the ball across the scorched grass. "Aluze, stand!" The ball suddenly stopped rolling, flipped open into a tiny monster, before glowing with green energy. A second later, a large machine with a body that was chrome silver and blue, consisting of an aerodynamic body with two panelled wings, four metal spikes for tailfeathers, two large green fins on its back, with black missile launchers sandwiched between them, and an avian-looking head with glowing purple eyes and yellow-painted frills, appeared out of nowhere.

The Phoenixes raised their eyebrows in unison. Grace applauded. "That is so cool!"

"That's great, but how does it help us?" Totomaru questioned.

"Aluze has a unique design amongst Mechanical Bakugan," Lync explained. "While most of them are built for standard on-the-ground brawling, Aluze here," He grinned, throwing the Fioreans a wink. "Was designed to act as an orbital weapons platform,"

"So he can go into space?" Grace eagerly guessed, and the Vestal nodded confirmation. "Small catch, though. There's only enough room for five people inside him,"

The eight wizards looked amongst one another. "I'm out," Totomaru shook his head. "Fire needs to consume air to survive. I'd be useless,"

"Same here. There's no sound in space," Boomer agreed.

"Pass," Hare shrugged.

"Grace, you and I should definitely go. My Archive and your Reality spells are the only magics here that'll be effective in space," Sarph pointed out.

"And I've gotta come. I'm the only one who can command Aluze," Lync added. "Plus, we need to save Tyria a seat,"

Pierce and Fleur looked at each other, and the Petal mage shrugged and made a shooing gesture, understanding that this was Pierce's mission.

"Alright. Let's go help Tyria save the world," Pierce grinned.

~P's E~

The rocket powered through the stratosphere, and Tyria flew after it. If she wasn't still in her Mark Infinity form, the environment would have been too hostile for her to continue without meeting her demise, but her metal skin functioned as well as any spacesuit and the lingering power from plugging herself into the city's power grid was keeping her going. Plus, apparently in this state she didn't need to breathe, or at least not as much as usual. That was convenient.

Suddenly, the last of the resistance from the air around her faded, and stars twinkled all around her. In the distance, she could see the sun casting a yellow glow at her, and beneath her . . wow.

Earth Land was beautiful. An entire planet beneath her, with shimmering blue oceans and lush greens and browns making up the land. Her metallic eyelids widened, and part of Tyria wished that she'd taken the time to code a TechType: Camera.

Shaking her head, she told herself to focus on the task at hand. Rolfe and his rocket were still a threat to all of Electria, possibly the entire world. He had to be stopped.

Flexing her wings, she twisted in mid-a . . space, and watched as the lower module of the rocket detached and secondary boosters on the upper part activated, sending the rocket - slowly - flying away. Tyria knew she could pursue, but the lower module . . there was probably still some magical residue within it that could augment her reserves. If she reverted back to flesh and blood in these conditions, she'd die instantly, and Mark Infinity could only be maintained as long as she had power to feed it. Besides, there was something about that detached module that was calling to her.

So, using her mechanical wings like flippers, she pushed herself towards the abandoned module, clinging to it with metal fingers, and, before she knew what she was doing, lunged forwards and tore away a hunk of metal with her teeth, chewing it with steel molars and stuffing it into her mouth, before swallowing it, plating, circuitry, and all. It tasted _good_ , and, without really thinking about it, Tyria tore away and ate another piece of the rocket.

The transformed wizard was almost halfway through consuming the entire module by the time she realised what she was doing. Tyria paused, metal tongue feeling the sharp edges of the iron in her mouth, and ran blue fingers over the warped metal where she had torn away her . . food. "What's happening to me?" she mouthed the words through her mouthful, but there was no sound in space.

Tyria shook her head and spat out the half-eaten piece of spaceship, pushing herself away and casting around for Rolfe's rocket. She had to stay focused . . and, surprisingly, after her little feeding frenzy, she felt a lot better. Like eating all that technology had actively given her strength, rather than just allowing the magical residue contained within the ore to supplement her reserves.

She spotted the machine in the distance, and, pushing off from the module, sent herself soaring after her foe. She had to stop him from getting to Etherion . . wait . . what was that, in the distance?

~P's E~

Unfortunately, there were no windows in Aluze's interior, so the other Phoenixes remained unaware of the beauty of the planet beneath them. They were, however, fully aware of when they left Earth's gravity.

"Whoa - whoa!" Pierce gasped, as his feet suddenly left the floor. "What's happening?" he asked, grabbing for the wall to prevent himself drifting through the interior of the Bakugan's hull.

"We're in space. There's no gravity," Lync replied, grabbing at the control panel to make sure he didn't drift out of reach of the controls. "Aluze! Locate and initiate voyage to Satellite Square: Etherion!" he commanded. Aluze beeped in affirmation, and the wizards felt the machine shudder around them as its rockets activated, sending them shooting through space. "It's close. We should be there in just a few minutes," the Vestal reported.

"This is so cool!" Grace grinned, leaping around the space within Aluze.

Sarph shrugged, floating in mid-air as Grac bounced around him. "Aera works by negating gravity's hold on me, so this is nothing new,"

A few minutes of this later, Aluze halted in mid-space. "We're here. Etherion should be right outside," Lync declared.

"Well, what are we supposed to do now?" Pierce asked. "We can't exactly go outsi - where's Grace?"

"Outside," Sarph replied.

Just outside the spaceship, within an invisible, airtight bubble of bent reality, Grace hovered, looking around. Frowning, she opened another rift and poked her head through it, back inside the ship. "What am I looking for?" she asked Sarph.

"Grace! Don't just teleport outside a spaceship in space! You could die like that!" Pierce protested.

"But I didn't," the Dragon Slayer shrugged, which left Pierce at a loss for words for long enough that Sarph advised her, "A ship other than ours would be a good indicator that something's wrong. So would any activity that implies Etherion is about to fire,"

Grace took another look, before teleporting fully back inside Aluze. "Nope," she shrugged. "We're the only ones here, and Etherion looks normal. I think so, at least,"

"Did we get here ahead of Rolfe?" Pierce suggested.

"No way. He had a huge headstart. He should be here by now," Sarph shook his head but Lync's eyes widened, and his already-pale face grew whiter. "Unless Rolfe lied, and Etherion wasn't his objective to begin with,"

"Well . . what else could he possibly want in space?" the S-Class wizard frowned. "Yeah. It's not like there's a lot of orbital superweapons out there," Pierce agreed.

"About that," Lync nodded, gulping. "Remember how I told you that I ditched King Zenoheld when he started plotting world domination with the Alternative Weapons System?"

"Yeeeeeah?"

"The Alternative . . is an orbital weapons platform that makes Aluze look like a toy," the boy informed them. "Its main cannon rivals Etherion in power, it has several weaker cannons that deter attacks or aid the main one, and it also has built-in bunkers containing thousands of Mechanical Bakugan Trap guards,"

"But you said it was destroyed," Sarph pointed out.

"Eh, destroyed, rendered non-functional, in need of repair . . we thought it wouldn't matter! Zenoheld was dead and the Alternative was in space, who was going to be crazy enough to try to get up here and fix it?!"

Pierce raised expectant eyebrows.

"I'll plot a course. Hopefully we can get there in time," Lync groaned.

~P's E~

Tyria watched, straining her wings to catch up, as Rolfe's spaceship docked with an absolutely gigantic spaceship, the size of a small city. Coloured deep red, bristling with cannons on every side, and with what looked like a pair of ridge-like bunkers on either one of the massive wings that extended from either side of the main body, the Alternative Weapons System was an absolute behemoth of destruction that . . . would have been a lot more menacing if not for the gaping hole in its right wing and the giant crater where it's prow ought to have been, which was where Rolfe's rocket had docked. Debris that might have once been part of the machine littered the space around it. She didn't know for sure, but it reminded her of something that Lync had told her about once; the Alternative Weapons System, a creation of the mad King Zenoheld. So, Rolfe had never planned to go after Etherion after all, and this was his goal.

"I've gotta get inside it," she resolved, flying 'upwards' - relative to the Alternative - and angling towards the crater in its prow. Surely there was an opening in there that she could use to enter?

As she soared into the Alternative, Tyria grasped a chunk of crimson debris about the size of her hand that had been floating nearby, and took a bite out of it, subconsciously deciding that the titanium/steel alloy the Alternative was made out of was chewier, but tasted better than either the iron of Rolfe's rocket or the aluminium wiring of the power grid.

Realising what she was doing, Tyria allowed herself a silent, dark chuckle. If the worst came to the worst, she could _eat_ the Alternative.

She touched down in the jagged, fractured end of a ruined corridor that led into the machine, feeling the chilled metal under her mechanised feet as she let her wings dissipate for the time being. Eating so much of the discarded piece of Rolfe's rocket had given her enough strength to maintain her Mark Infinity transformation for a couple of hours yet - at least, provided she didn't try to fire off another Large Hadron attack - and if she did start to run out again, food was all around her.

Tyria had decided to accept that something had been going on with her since activating Mark Infinity, and figured that her best option was to focus on stopping Rolfe and think about it later.

Suddenly, the machine shook around her. Lights began flickering on, and suddenly there was something holding her to the floor. Artificial gravity.

Tyria looked around, her train of thought forgotten, as she quietly panicked. Surely Rolfe couldn't have gotten the Alternative back online already?

~P's E~

When he had docked with the Alternative, Rolfe had been disappointed to find that one of the parts of the superweapon that had been destroyed was the cockpit. However, he had found a solution.

Having broken into the storage units where the hundreds of robotic guards, the Fortresses, stored on board the Alternative were kept, Rolfe had clambered into the emergency cockpit, which had been installed in all Fortress models, of one of them, and used his DeStructure magic to hotwire the machine, before piloting it out of the bays and back to the hole in the Alternative where the bridge had once been. From there, he had deemed it time to use the spell he had crafted specifically to revive the Alternative Weapons System.

"Now!" Rolfe splayed his fingers and spread his arms as wide as he could in the cramped cockpit. "Operation Scale Up!" Bronze energy coated his body, making his eyes glow yellow. "Scale 5!"

The crimson Fortress he was riding shivered as it slowly changed colours from Zenoheld's red to Rolfe's bronze and yellow. It's cannons unfolded and extended, but Rolfe wasn't done. "DeStructure Scale 5: Eradicative Assimilation Virus!"

Suddenly, tendrils of bronze energy erupted from the Fortress mech, flailing around for anything technological to grab onto - immediately making contact with the Alternative. As the virus spread into the superweapon, Rolfe's stolen mech, along with the remnants of his spaceship, began to break apart as tentacles of brown magic attracted all of the broken parts of the machine, magnetically calling them in. Rolfe's magic rapidly reshaped everything it could come across, transforming mech, ship and debris alike into part of the Alternative, and forming a new head for the behemoth.

Inside the newly rebuilt cockpit, Rolfe lounged, watching as his magic created readouts and display screens around him. "I so love it when a plan comes to fruition,"

~P's E~

Back inside the Alternative, Tyria watched in surprise as spreading magic converted the silver hallways into bronze. "What the hell?"

The first indication that this was a particularly bad thing was when a tendril of brown virus energy erupted from the ground and tried to grab her. Tyria squeaked in shock, back-pedalling, and immediately invoked, "TechType: Machine Gun!"

This told her two things; firstly, that the artificial atmosphere generators within the Alternative were back online and she no longer needed to keep the Mark Infinity transformation active - though she would anyway, at least until this was all over - and, secondly, that the bullets being spat from her gun had little to no effect on the attacking tentacle as it lashed at her once again. This time, it caught the lip of her gun, and immediately started to convert it.

Seeing the blue and silver metal begin to be infected and change to yellow and bronze, Tyria freaked. "Release!" Her spell disengaged and she pulled her arm free as the tentacle finished corrupting and assimilating it - and promptly started firing at her with her own gun.

Tyria took a second to pale at the implications of this event, but then she remembered that she was being shot at and hurriedly invoked, "TechType: Motorbike!" Her cycle manifested and carried her out of range.

The tech wizard breathed a sigh of relief as she took shelter around a corner. "Did Lord Rolfe really cast a blanket technological assimilation spell on this thing? I guess that's one way to get it up and running again," But still, she was nervous. Magic like this would be especially dangerous to a wizard like her . . if it made contact with her, it would infect her magic's internal systems and assimilate her into the machine. She'd become a mindless drone, forever part of the Alternative Weapons System. As it was, she'd just lost her Machine Gun spell - _permanently_. She'd need to code a replacement spell when all this was over with.

"I've gotta shut this place down," Tyria resolved. "If only there was a map," With only a vague idea of where to go, she raced down the infected corridor, ready for an attack at any time from any direction.

~P's E~

"Okay, we're coming up on the Alternative," Lync reported.

"You're sure there's no cameras and viewscreens or anything?" Sarph skeptically questioned.

"It's my Bakugan. I think I'd know if there was a -" The angelic warrior reached over and pressed a couple of buttons on the screen, and, suddenly, a holographic display of everything Aluze's robotic eyes were seeing.

Lync sulkily shut up.

"So, that's the Alternative," Grace commented, eyes widened at the yellow/bronze monstrosity before them.

"Is it supposed to be that shade of yellow? Because it's not very kingly," Pierce observed.

Lync sat straight up. "What? Yellow? The Alternative is . . red?" he dumbly blinked, looking at the display monitor ."That isn't right," he slowly commented.

"If something isn't right, it's most likely wrong," Sarph pointed out. "We ought to assume that whatever Rolfe's plan to reactivate the Alternative is, it has succeeded, and we are about to confront a fully functional Alternative Weapons System,"

Pierce blinked. "Wait . . Lync? How many Bakugan did the Brawlers have with them when they attacked the Alternative last time?"

Considering the question, the Vestal counted on his fingers. "Uh . . all six Brawlers had one - no, Marucho had two and Shun had three. That's nine, plus Spectra and Gus', and Prince Hydron and his Dryoid defected mid-battle because he was sick of his father. And Dan and Spectra both had Battle Gear, and Spectra had two separate Battle Gears, so, uh . . fifteen?"

"And we're about to attack it with _one_ ," the Tamer questioned.

Everyone suddenly realised how suicidal their journey was. "Uh . . maybe we should turn around," Lync admitted.

Suddenly, Aluze rocked around them, and a warning light indicated that one of its wings ha been hit. "Evasive manoeuvres!" Sarph commanded and Lync seized the controls. The readouts indicated that yes, the Alternative had been repaired and activated, and its secondary weapons had been activated and were firing on them.

"Quick. Tell me Aluze's strengths and weaknesses, and those of the Alternative!" Sarph commanded.

The Vestal wrenched the controls upwards and a laser narrowly missed the underside of the Mechanical Bakugan. "He's fast and agile, but his shields are horrible," he reported, pulling Aluze into a barrel roll as he dove towards the underside of the Alternative, where there were less cannons. "The Alternative has a hell of a lot of weaponry but it's really slow!"

"Can we return fire?" Sarph asked, and Lync froze. "Yes!" Suddenly, he produced a small stack of cards from his pocket, slid his Gauntlet open and slotted a card into the reader. "Ability card Activate!" he commanded, and the card shone in his Gauntlet. "Thunder Stripper!" Power built in Aluze's metal mouth as it soared, before raining down a beam of neon-green energy on the underside of the Alternative's flank.

The smoke cleared, revealing that the attack hadn't even dented the Alternative's exterior plating. The four wizards blanched. "I guess we can't return fire," the Vestal gulped, before pitching Aluze sideways and diving forwards to avoid a fresh volley of laser fire.

The Phoenixes were tossed into the back of the hull as the g-forces, angered by Lync's haphazard driving, took their frustration out on his passengers. "Why is there only one seat?" Pierce protested.

"'Cause I only have one butt," Lync retorted, to childish giggles from Grace.

"Alright -" Sarph drew breath to deliver a plan, but suddenly Aluze rocked around them. "What was that?!"

The Vestal twisted Aluze's head to look around. "Aww, no. It's the Fortress guards! They must have been activated!" Sure enough, Aluze was being pursued by almost two dozen yellow and bronze mechs, all of which had obviously been infected with Rolfe's magical virus, whose bodies were bristling with cannons on every possible surface. A barrage of shots peppered their vehicle and it was all Lync could do to dodge most of them.

"Quick, go left!" Sarph commanded, and the pilot nodded. "Right!"

"No, left!" the paladin corrected, but, before Lync could respond, a charged blast from one of the Fortresses' chest cannons finally hit Aluze's tail, and Lync screamed as the controls went slack in his hands and Aluze spiralled to the left, smoke trailing from its damaged tail.

"Now, up! Uh, right! Down!" Sarph corrected as Aluze rolled.

"But that'll take us into the - oh," the pilot corrected himself, noticing the hole in the Alternative's left side, which was currently beneath them, and realising Sarph's plan. Obligingly, he wrestled with the controls and sent Aluze spiralling relative-down, towards the hole in the ship, with the slower Fortresses in pursuit.

"Wait for it!" Lync shouted, more to himself than anything. "Now!" He jerked the controls, and Aluze sharply dipped further down, pulling a z-axis turn that most roller coasters would envy, and pitching him directly towards one of the larger corridors that were exposed to open space by the hole. The Fortress mechs, unable to keep up, shot through the hole and their own momentum sent them tumbling away into space as they tried and failed to make the turn Aluze had.

Meanwhile, the silver-and-green Bakugan slid into the corridor, still going at incredible speed, and, even as Aluze's metal fins and wings kicked up sparks as the artificial gravity began to affect the out-of-control Bakugan, it shot straight through the interior of the Alternative.

"There's a wall!" Grace shrieked, and, sure enough, the corridor turned ahead of them and Aluze was about to smash into a wall. Lync frantically grabbed another card. "Ability Activate: Dora Cannon!" Aluze roared, a thunderous sound of tortured metal, before blasting a laser of green energy from its mouth. The attack smashed into the wall and blasted through it, carving a hole that looked to be just barely big enough for Aluze to pass through. Lync frantically tried to direct his Bakugan through the hole, even as the g-forces pulled him out of his seat, but couldn't manage it in time. "Brace for impact!" he yelled.

~P's E~

Tyria, still speeding down the corridor, had only just concluded that the assimilation magic had run its course and she was no longer in danger when the corridor in front of her exploded, with a familiar metal head and upper body emerging amid a mass of smoke. She screeched to a halt and deactivated her Motorbike, prepared for another fight, but paused, recognising the machine and raising an eyebrow. "Aluze?" the wizard blinked, surprised.

Suddenly, the machine flashed and turned into green energy, which shrunk and returned to being a tiny ball, and fell into the wreckage around the hole in the wall. Tyria rushed forwards. That crash looked bad.

She found Pierce, Lync, Grace and Sarph lying, dazed, in the wreckage. "Wow," Tyria commented, spotting the little silver ball that was Aluze in ball form and scooping it up before it could roll away.

"Tyria?" Grace was first to regain her senses, rubbing her eyes and sitting up. "Whoa," she breathed, taking in Tyria's blue/silver Mark Infinity Form. "That's awesome,"

"Tyria! You're alright!" Lync grinned, sitting up. Tyria turned and grinned at him, holding out her hand for him to take Aluze. Lync gratefully wrapped his around her steel digits, scooping up his Bakugan.

Unfortunately, this was the sight that Pierce was roused from his brief stupor to. His eyes widened, before narrowing angrily at the sight of Tyria and Lync seemingly holding hands, but he pressed fingers to the bridge of his nose and screwed his eyes shut tight. If this was what Tyria wanted he had to respect it. He carefully stood up and checked himself over.

"Is everyone alright?" If Sarph was surprised by Tyria's presence or appearance, he didn't show it, and checked each of the group over to ensure that they were in good condition. "Good. Now, where is this Rolfe person? I think he's overdue for a good bash,"

"Actually, I already beat him up," Tyria offered. "But obviously he didn't get the memo, so I'm good to go for round two,"

"Why?" Lync asked, confused, and everyone looked at him. "Well, of course we need to beat Rofle," Pierce frowned.

"No we don't. Beating up Lord Rolfe won't destroy the Alternative. When the Brawlers attacked this place a few years ago, they didn't target Zenoheld. They went for the Alternative's power core. If we blow the power core, we can book it and Rolfe'll die in the explosion," Lync explained.

"I like that plan," Sarph admitted.

"Wait. How will we get out? Aluze crashed," Pierce asked, but the Vestal shook his head. "Aluze is fine. He's a bit damaged, but he'll get us back to Earth Land,"

"Then we just need to find this core. Where is it?" Sarph asked.

Lync frowned. "It's been years since I stole the blueprints, but I think it's in the front, on the lower levels,"

"Then let's go," Pierce declared, rushing out into the corridor and leading the charge . . before pausing. "Is this the right direction?"

"Probably," Lync shrugged.

~P's E~

Surprisingly, they reached the large, round room - large enough for Aluze to perform an aerial show in - that housed the power core, plated in bronze with the occasional yellow streak, without issue. The core itself was a massive nebula of yellow energy, focused between parallel spires on the floor and ceiling, that made all five of the wizards look small. "How are we going to destroy that?" Pierce gasped.

"I don't think we'd need to destroy it. Just interfere with it enough that it loses cohesion. Then it'll spin out of control and rock itself to pieces," Sarph thoughtfully commented. "Like with spatial magic," he smiled, looking at Grace.

"Uh . . so you want me to do something?" Grace asked.

"Anything you can. Hit it with your strongest, most reality-warping attack," Sarah confirmed, and Grace grinned, crossing her arms into an 'X' shape. "You got it!" she grinned, before inhaling and focusing the part of her power she could access. "Okay, here goes. Dragon Slayer's Secret Art: Dark Matter; Galaxy Rotation Wing!" The pulse of grey, physics-defying energy that was sent forth enveloped the power core in a wave that battered at it with blades of reality from every direction. It rippled like jelly, and began to spark.

"I think it's time to leave," Tyria observed, and Lync agreed, dashing back into the corridor and producing Aluze's ball. "Bakugan, brawl!" he commanded. "Stand, Aluze!" The battered bird-bot appeared, and Lync swung open the hull hatch. "Everyone in!" The Phoenixes hurriedly followed him, and, as soon as the door had swung closed, Aluze took off down the corridor.

"Is that really it?" Sarph asked. "No climactic final battle, no ultimate foe that we must defeat or the world will meet a fiery demise?"

"I know what you mean. This feels a bit too easy," Pierce agreed. His flute appeared in a flash of Requip magic, and he absent-mindedly rubbed it. "I haven't even summoned a beast since that fight in the courtyard,"

"Well, the Alternative's still going to be fully functional until it explodes. So we need to make our escape while in full view of those cannons, and that superlaser, and all those Fortress guards," Lync pointed out.

Pierce gulped and clutched his stomach. "And I thought Hare's driving made me sick,"

~P's E~

After a series of gut-busting turns and narrow misses, Aluze finally made it out of the Alternative's range. "Whew," Lync sighed as the last of the lasers aimed at them disappeared off the port bow. "That was close,"

Pierce, who looked decidedly green, did his best not to throw up.

"Alright. Back to Teslon,"

~P's E~

Rolfe watched the Bakugan leave, and cackled. "Fools. They're right to run, for they have no chance of defeating me, not with the Alternative Weapons System at my -" He paused, spotting a beeping red light on his control panel. "What's that?"

The explosion created when the Alternative blew itself up, for the second time running, no less, could be seen in the sky across half of Earthland, including Teslon.

On the tallest spire in the colourful city of Teslon, a man covered in white silk crouched, with ocean-blue eyes and orange stubble coating his chin, as he watched the explosion. He is recognisable as the same man who observed Pierce, Hare, Sarph and Grace's escape from the facility, and the defeat of Goliath in Ghoulia. "An impressive victory, Phoenix's Eye. But your End approaches. So sayeth the Assassin,"

A/N

 **A/N**

 **And done! Finally! I would have cut this chapter off a while ago, but I was determined to end it on the Alternative's destruction.**

 **And sorry for faking everyone out with the whole Etherion thing. Rolfe is a deceptive person who likes - liked to take every possible precaution. Anyone who came after him would attempt to intercept him at the Etherion, and resolving the confusion might just have bought him enough time to get the Alternative operational. He wanted every benefit.**

 **Peace!**


	40. Till Christmas Come

Chapter 40: Till Christmas Come

 **Note: Both because we cracked fifty reviews and to celebrate ending the arc, I've double-posted again! So make sure you didn't miss Chapter 39!**

The Garuda touched down in the courtyard outside Headmaster Atsphuria's College of Practical Education, and the group disembarked.

It was the day after the battle against Rolfe and the Alternative, and, after co-opting Kay's house for the night - which Tyria and Lync had felt no remorse over after discovering the way he had treated their friends - they had taken advantage of the chaos surrounding the 'inexplicable' disappearance of Lord Rolfe, as well as the extensive damage to the city's power grid that would likely take weeks to repair, to slip out of Teslon and return to the Garuda. From there, it was easy to set course for the College.

"I'm gonna miss this place," Tyria admitted, looking around as the team strolled through the gardens on their way up to the Headmaster's offices.

"Yeah. But the Compendium is paramount, y'now," Lync helplessly shrugged, and his former teammate nodded. "I understand that. And I don't regret leaving to safeguard the Compendium, because it's brought a lot of good things into my life. I just," Tyria sighed as they passed through the common room, which suddenly reminded her of the Phoenix's Eye guild hall. "Can't help but remember what I'm leaving behind,"

"Not forever," Sarph reminded her.

"He's right. Eventually the war will end," Totomaru agreed.

"I know," Tyria nodded gratefully.

Soon, they were outside Atsphuria's study once more, and, before anyone could knock, the doors swung open. Gabriel Atsphuria was seated at his desk, and, with him, was a young-looking girl with long, curly orange hair and brown eyes, wearing a green vest and white shorts under a sleeveless yellow cardigan. They had evidently been engaged in an animated conversation before the Phoenixes entered, but both looked up at the newcomers - and the girl beamed. "Lync!" she gasped, rushing forwards with arms outstretched. "Alice!" Lync returned the gesture, and the two met in a hug.

And then Lync pressed a hand to her chin and gave her a full-on kiss on the lips. Alice leant into the contact, wrapping an arm around his neck and running her fingers through his salmon-coloured hair.

Behind them, Pierce's jaw fell open, and he felt like all the colour had left his body and a giant white exclamation mark had appeared over his head.

Eventually the two broke apart, and Lync turned back to the Phoenixes. "Oh. Everyone, this is Alice. My girlfriend,"

The Tamer suddenly felt rather lightheaded. 'I've been worrying about Lync and Tyria getting together since I met him . . and he's had a _girlfriend_ this whole time?!' he silently screamed at his brain.

"Hi! Nice to meet you," Grace, taking no notice of her adoptive brother's stupor, gave Alice a sunny smile. "It's nice to meet you too," Alice smiled back at her.

"Ahem," Headmaster Atsphuria coughed. "There will be plenty of time for introductions later. I take it that Lord Rolfe's plans have been stopped?"

"Completely. And he's in no state to try again," Tyria confirmed.

"I see. I had heard that he mysteriously disappeared . . I suppose that it isn't likely he'll return," It was a statement of fact, not a question, but Tyria nodded confirmation anyway. "Not unless someone can bring back the dead,"

Gabriel's eyes twitched upwards in surprise. "Did you . ." he trailed off. He hadn't thought Tyria was the kind to kill someone . . and his concerns were assuaged as his protege shook her head. "Not me. We blew up his space station and he got caught in the blast,"

The Headmaster raised an incredulous eyebrow at the mention of a space station, but decided not to press the point. "Well, all's well that ends well, I suppose," A fatherly twinkle gleamed in his eye. "And you're alright? No injuries, nothing concerning?"

"I did merge with Teslon's power grid during my fight with him," Tyria admitted. She thought for a second about the strange feelings she'd been having since then, the inexplicable desire to eat technology. But . . the Headmaster was getting old, and as Atsphuria's was one of the only colleges in Electria still operating, he had enough on his plate with the war against Alvarez. She didn't want to worry him more, especially when she was about to go back to Fiore, where he couldn't reach her . . "I don't think there have been any lasting effects, though,"

"Oh? Well, I suppose that's good. Do inform me if you have any concerns, though," Atsphuria commanded her. "Now then. Wizards of Phoenix's Eye, you all have my, and indeed all of Electria's, boundless gratitude. Without your aid, I fear that this crisis would have ended far worse than it did,"

"Just doing our job," Pierce, who had recovered, nodded with a smile.

"Indeed. However, this situation has taught me something about the arrangement surrounding the safety of the Compendium. While secrecy is of the utmost importance, placing all of Electria's eggs in a single basket is foolhardy no matter how high-quality the basket is," Headmaster Atsphuria stated. "Therefore, if you are all amenable, I would like to send a couple more of my students with you when you return to Fiore, so that Tyria can show them the location of the Compendium. That way, on the off chance that anything happens to her, we have backups,"

Pierce raised his eyebrows, but nodded. It made sense. "I suppose that's alright . . but who?"

Atsphuria smiled as his gaze rested on Lync and Alice. "Who else? I believe your adventures over the last couple of days prove that Lync can work well with your methods, as it were. I will eagerly await hearing about the wonders I have no doubt you will achieve when the arrangement is more permanent,"

"Really?" Lync raised his eyebrows and grinned. "Awesome!" He suddenly paused, looking at Alice. "But then . . does this mean that I'd have to say goodbye to Alice?"

His girlfriend chuckled, shaking her head. "Of course not, don't be silly. I'm coming with you,"

Lync looked excited for a second, but paused. "But what about your grandfather?"

"He'll be alright without me. And it isn't like I can't visit," Alice pointed out, holding up a black card. Obviously the card meant more to Lync and Tyria than it did to the others in the room, because they nodded and grinned. "Alright!" Lync cheered. "Road trip!"

Suddenly, something occurred to Tyria. "But wait. Headmaster? What are you going to do, now that Alvarez knows where the college is?"

"Do they?" the Headmaster asked. "Because for them to have discovered the location of the College, a member of their attack force would have had to have escaped to inform them of this fact. And I assure you," for a second his features took on a dark tone, "no one escaped,"

"But enough unpleasantness," he changed the subject. "I want you all sailing back to Fiore by nightfall. But in the meantime, eat, drink, make merry, all of you. You all deserve to enjoy the finest that the College has to offer while you can," Pierce got the feeling that this was more directed towards his leaving students than it was to the guests, but accepted the invitation regardless.

Lync and Alice exchanged a glance. "How about one more picnic on our favourite hill?" the boy suggested, and Alice nodded approval. "Of course. But I'm sure we'll find another favourite hill in Fiore," Giggling like schoolgirls, the two dashed out of the room.

"You know, she could give you some cues," Sarph wryly commented to Fleur, who blushed. She slowly turned to Totomaru - and blinked, because he and Hare had vanished.

"She's probably dragging him off to that romantic hill," Boomer advised, and Fleur nodded, dashing after them.

"You know, I'd quite like to take a look at the library," Sarph mentioned to Boomer, who grinned. "And there's gotta be some sweet tunes I can catch around here,"

"Library, huh . . maybe they have something on Dragon Slayers?" Grace asked, and Pierce, pursing his lips, nodded thoughtfully. "We can take a look," With that, the four left, leaving Tyria and Gabriel Atsphuria alone in the room.

"You know, Tyria my dear, you can come to me about anything," Gabriel advised her with a kindly smile.

"I know," the tech wizard nodded, but didn't say anything else.

"Alright then. You can go," he nodded, and, smiling gratefully, Tyria turned to leave.

As she stepped across the threshold, the Headmaster gave her one last piece of advice. "Oh, by the way? I've heard that copper is very good for digestion. Particularly for people with iron stomachs," he said in a half-joking tone.

The door swung shut.

~P's E~

That night, after one last Electrian dinner, the Garuda, with all ten passengers aboard, Kit at the wheel - and complaining without end about the fact that Pierce had gone into space when he knew very well that yokais couldn't survive in space - and stocked for the five-days it would take them to fly back to Magnolia, was cruising through the sky. Everyone was gathered on the rear deck, watching the College vanish into the distance. "I'm gonna miss that place," Lync admitted, and Alice nodded agreement as the campus vanished on the horizon.

The ten stood in silence for a moment, surrounded by night, until Sarph decided he didn't care much for the homesick atmosphere. "Right, everyone! I think that, since we're coming back to the guild with a couple of new members, we should all get to know each other a bit more. Starting with the rookie," he gestured to Alice, who self-consciously placed a hand on her stomach. "Who, me?"

"Sure. Show us what you've got," Pierce encouraged her.

"Wait, we should do this on the main deck. More room there," Totomaru interrupted.

Agreeing, the party moved down to the main deck. "So, uh, you want me to show you my magic?" Alice asked. "I'm not very good at fighting," she meekly admitted. "My magic's more about the theory than the practise,"

"Everyone starts somewhere. And not all wizards are best at fighting," Sarph coaxed her.

"Alright," Alice nodded. She raised her left fist into the air, before extending her right palm face-up. A pair of purple magic circles appeared where her hands were, each with different glyphs woven into its rim.

Keeping her fist in position, Alice swept her arm sideways, and a third magic circle appeared to her right. The watching Phoenixes watched with bated breath. What kind of magic required three magic circles for one spell?

"Amaterasu Formula: 3!" Alice declared. The three magic circles around her rotated and slid together, merging into one in front of her, before launching an explosive payload of darkness energy in front of her. Hare shrieked and ducked out of the way as the blast shot past her and flew off into the sky.

"Amaterasu Formula . . that's a very rare magical technique," Sarph observed. "You need a very good understanding of the laws that govern the use of magic to use those techniques,"

"Yeah . . I don't like to brag, though," Alice shyly admitted, looking away. "I don't like to fight, either,"

"Yeah. Alice is smart, and she's a good strategist. But she's not the fighting type," Lync summarised, and his girlfriend nodded in agreement.

"Well, Master's gonna be overjoyed," Pierce wryly commented.

"Why?" Lync asked, and Alice raised an eyebrow in agreement.

"Fairy Tail has Freed Justine _and_ Levy McGarden. Sure, we have Fernando, but he doesn't really compare," Pierce explained. "So Master's gonna be thrilled to have a scholarly type she can pit against Fairy Tail's bookworms,"

Alice looked less than comfortable at the idea of being 'pitted against' anyone, but nodded all the same. "Whatever works, I guess,"

As the discussion continued, Grace tugged on Pierce's sleeve. "What is it, Grace?" the Tamer asked.

"Can we go on holiday in Electria for Christmas again next year?" Grace asked with a wide, innocent smile, sounding perfectly serious. "Because I had lots of fun!"

~P's E~

At noon, December 23rd, the Garuda touched down on the field outside the guild hall that had been set aside for the airship to park in. Lync, however, was impatient and used his Kite spell to fly down to the guild hall, because he couldn't be bothered with waiting for the Garuda to land.

Snow crunched underfoot as the eighteen-year-old Vestal landed, feeling the chill through his black boots and thanking the heavens that he'd retrieved his warm, Vexos-issue coat with its swampy green fur lining and black ruff. In this weather, he'd need it.

He ran around the side of the guild building,taking it in from every angle, before stopping outside the front entrance. "Wow. This is a guild?"

"Indeed it is, young man," Turning, Lync spotted an elderly woman in a red martial arts uniform using what looked like basic fire magic (though, having learnt magic among Electrian peoples, his perception of 'basic' magic might be skewed) to clear some snow off the front entrance. She didn't look like much, Lync thought. She was probably the janitor or something. "Do you like what you see?" she asked with a smile.

"Not really," Lync shrugged with brutal honesty. "My College back in Electria would eat this place for a midnight snack,"

A few minutes later, it may only be surprising to some that the rest of the new arrivals appeared to find their guild master trying to strangle Lync with a rope of fire, from which he was dangling several feet in the air. "Say it!" she commanded.

"Alright! The guild hall - erk - is very nice and homely - ack - and it doesn't matter that you don't have sports grounds or pools or multiple towers!" Lync spluttered.

"Master!" Pierce shouted in an exasperated tone. "Don't go scaring off the new recruits before they've even set foot in the building!" he demanded.

Guild Master Feng Chriona raised her eyebrows in surprise at the sight of the Electrian team, with the hostages they had sent to rescue and a new addition to boot, rushing around the corner of the guild hall. Obligingly, she set Lync down, where he collapsed into the snow. "Who's this, then?"

Lync's jaw fell open. "This crazy old bat's the guild master?!" he demanded in shock.

"Master," Pierce said in a placating tone, leaving Tyria and Alice to pick Lync up. "We do not strangle people with tentacles of fire except in retribution,"

"It was in retribution! He attacked my guild with his rude words!" Feng huffily folded her arms, before looking back at Lync. "Still, those are awfully bold things for a person wanting to join up to say . . I like that," she smiled. "You say you want to join my guild? Come on in, then, we'll get you and your little friend sorted out,"

The Vestal blinked in confusion. One minute she was attacking him, and next she was inviting him inside? God, Fioreans were nuts.

Sarph registered the baffled expression on Lync's face and chuckled. "Lync, Alice? Welcome to Phoenix's Eye!"

Lync cast a mock reproachful look at Tyria as he dusted himself off and strode in, looking the epitome of Vexos pride. "You just had to join the guild with the crazy people,"

"You think we're bad? Wait until you see Fairy Tail," Pierce snorted.

Tyria blinked as, at the mention of their rivals, a thought occurred to her. "Hey, uh, Pierce? Are we expecting an attack from Fairy Tail on Christmas?"

"Naah, nothing doing. Christmas is sacrosanct," Pierce shrugged.

"And I curse that Precht man who was in charge of them before Makarov for convincing me to allow that," Feng off-handedly called, striding over to the bar. "Sarah! Get your stamping arm ready! Pierce brought home another couple of recruits!"

"I didn't bring them! They're here on a mission to help with a war effort!" Pierce complained, rushing after the guild master.

"Really? Good, they can help with ours. Christmas might be sacred, but New Year's? That's another story. Muhuwaha," Feng darkly chuckled, rubbing her hands together.

Lync and Alice watched them go with degrees of concern as the rest of their group broke up, before looking to Tyria. "Is she always like that?" the Vestal asked.

"Naah. Master's usually pretty stable, but she gets, ah, eccentric around times of holidays," Tyria explained. "You get used to it,"

"Seems fun," Alice smiled.

"So, you two are the new recruits?" The three turned to see Sarah advancing towards them from the bar armed with a stamp and a smile. "Come with me, I'll get you sorted out,"

~P's E~

"So, that's the case, is it?"

Pierce had finally convinced Master Feng that hearing the report of what had happened in Electria from himself, Tyria and Lync was more important than plotting ways to outdo Fairy Tail with the New Year's festivities, and the three were seated in her quarters with her. It had taken some doing, but Lync had been convinced that Feng deserved to know about the Compendium.

"One more question. This Electrian Compendium you've mentioned, is it a threat to my guild?"

"No, I can honestly say it itself isn't," Tyria reassured her. "And as long as people don't know where to look, they won't be either,"

"Good, then I won't demand to know where it is. While I do wish I'd been told about all this sooner, I understand your reasons for keeping it secret, and will respect your wishes in that matter," Feng nodded, tactfully deciding not to mention that her mind-reading magic had given her all the information she could possibly want about the Compendium the first time she talked with Tyria.

She sighed, considering Tyria and Lync. "I'm not sure I like the idea that any of the members of my guild are loyal to another power over me . . but I understand the position that you're in, and I won't complicate it for my own selfish reasons. And this Atsphuria fellow does sound like a person I'd quite like to meet someday, so it would hardly make a good impression on him if I let his brats get in trouble while they're under my protection," she chuckled, before straightening up and smiling. "So, you two, for as long as you're here, consider yourselves members of the Phoenix's Eye guild. And tell that other friend of yours the same thing, because as much of an old fool it may make me to admit it, I've grown rather fold of you, Tyria Zechtian, and I don't want to let you down any more than you want to let down your dear old man back home,"

The master clapped her hands together. "But I've wasted enough of your time listening to an old woman blather on. Go out, get to know your new friends. Enjoy being a part of my guild, because, if I do say so myself," She smiled self-indulgently. "It's a good one,"

Lync nodded approvingly. "I like the way you think, ma'am. It's good to be here," With that, the three wizards left the room, smiling to themselves. "It's not the College. But it's still pretty good," Tyria grinned, and her schoolmate nodded in agreement. "Amen to that,"

As soon as they left, Feng whipped out her pocket-book and began sorting through it. "Alright . . do we have enough money for a swimming pool? If not, I'll have to pencil it in for the refurbishments,"

~P's E~

Christmas Day dawned bright and early, and Pierce really shouldn't have been surprised when Grace pounced on him as soon as the sun rose. "Pierce! Pierce, wake up! It's Christmas!"

The Tamer blearily rose, rubbing his eyes. "Yeah. Good morning," he sleepily nodded.

"Did Santa come? Because there isn't anything new underneath the tree," The tree in question was a small one that Pierce had bought the previous day to brighten up the apartment for Christmas time. He and Grace had heaped their presents for each other, as well as gifts for all of Pierce's beasts, under the tree. And, of course, Grace had counted.

"He probably went to the guild hall. That way, he could deliver everyone's presents at once, rather than waste time visiting everyone's houses," Pierce explained. He decided that, as, in a manner of speaking, this was Grace's first Christmas, he could allow an abundance of excitement.

"Then let's go!" Grace eagerly squealed.

Yawning, Pierce forced himself out of bed and noticed Grace was still in her pyjamas. "Get dressed first," he commanded. "We can have breakfast at the guild hall, but the parties won't start until, like, ten, so you'll have to be patient,"

~P's E~

Grace munched her way through a stack of breakfast bacon sandwiches - more of Sarah's culinary wonders - while keeping constant eyes on the clock as the guild trickled in, one by one.

"So, what's this Christmas business?" Lync asked, settling at the table nearby them.

Pierce blinked, and Grace gasped through a mouthful of meat. "How can you not know what Christmas is?" she demanded.

"Christmas is a Fiorean holiday," Artorias pointed out from the next table over. "It's not celebrated in Vestal, and only some people in Electria like it,"

"Christmas is the bestest holiday ever! There's snow, and presents, and jolly fat men who ride sleighs with reindeer!" the young Dragon Slayer burst out.

"Really? Uh . ." Lync looked a little lost, but, thankfully, Tyria and Alice arrived just then. "Don't worry. I'll tell you all about it," his girlfriend reassured him.

"Well, everyone?" Master Feng stood on the S-Class balcony, looking down on the main part of the hall. The job board had been pushed to the side, and a large Christmas tree sprinkled with decorations had been erected, underneath which was the massive pile of Kris-Kringle presents that had been mounting in the back room for weeks, until Santa Feng had dragged them all out, one by one, overnight. "It's Christmas! The one day of the year when everyone, old, young, smart, dumb, S-Class or no, can join in the celebrations and revel in what we are together!"

This spiel was met with applause from the entire guild, and, looking around, Pierce realised that it _was_ the entire guild. Sarph, Totomaru, Fernando, Russell, Larry, Wesley and Murphy were all gathered around the bar, which Sarah was manning as usual. Hare was watching them from where she was sitting on the stairwell. Eve, Ariel, Blanca and Fleur were at their table on the other side of the hall, all paying rapt attention. Artorias and Garrotte lounged together on a couch, with Boomer in an armchair nearby, and, at his table, Tyria, Grace, Lync and Alice were gathered with him. Myriads of other faces he knew were crowded around him, and, looking around, he noticed that even Faraday had popped in, standing in a corner and watching the proceedings. He blinked at this, raising an eyebrow in her direction. Did she always show up like that? He'd never seen her around for Christmas before . . but that didn't mean she hadn't been there.

Master Feng continued. "So celebrate! This day is for you, it's for us, and it's for everyone! Eat, drink, make merry and do as you please! For, together, we are Phoenix's Eye! Indomitable, relentless, and unstoppable!"

There was a roar of approval - and, suddenly, the entire guild erupted in chaos, as almost every member of the guild rushed for the tree at once to claim their gifts. "What the hell's going on?" Lync gasped as Alice clung to him in the commotion.

Grace, who had vanished into reality, reappeared, clutching a box. "This is Christmas!" she excitably squealed.

"This is chaos!" Alice squealed in panic.

Pierce, unbothered by the commotion, chewed on his brunch sausage sandwich. "This is delicious," he off-handedly commented.

Tyria vaulted over the chair and returned to her seat. "This is Phoenix's Eye," she summarily stated with a grin.

"Tyria, what have you gotten us into?" Lync moaned.

~P's E~

"Hey, Tyria?" After the chaos was over and people had gone to celebrate Christmas in their own ways, Pierce approached the Electrian girl with a colourful box in hand. "Merry Christmas," he offered.

Tyria looked at the box in her arms, and couldn't help but recall how she had spent her last Christmas; alone, in an old barn she had been using as shelter for the winter. No one had given her gifts then . . and it was Pierce she had to thank for not still living that life.

Pierce's eyes shot wide as she suddenly hugged him, wrapping her arms around her shoulders and burying her face in his neck. "Merry Christmas to you too," she whispered, pressing a box into his hands. The Tamer rubbed her back, returning the hug. "Having a good time?" he asked. Not just in relation to Christmas, but in relation to her entire situation.

"The best," Tyria responded, and Pierce smiled.

~P's E~

Christmas Day was a good day for all in Magnolia, and, as night fell, none could disagree with that fact.

Exhausted after all the fun she had had during her first Christmas, Grace collapsed into her bed, tucked in tight with her new plush dragon. Pierce took a while longer to fall asleep, watching snow fall outside the window.

In his house in the suburbia of Magnolia, Artorias was buried in his new books.

Boomer, too, had no intention of going to sleep any time soon, and was happily blasting Christmas Carols at an ear-splitting volume throughout the countryside from his shack.

Sarph was polishing his sword and armour, revelling in the sheen they gave off against the snowy light in the window.

At the guild hall, Alice, who, deciding that the dangerous jobs weren't for her, had accepted a job as waitress, assisted Sarah with cleaning up after the guild's celebrations.

Up at the Nest, Hare was snoring like a freight train, and Lync was cleaning up his and Alice's conjoined rooms, wanting to make sure Alice came back to a good place to sleep.

And, in her room, Tyria was watching the little metal bugs Pierce had given her. She knew he couldn't have made them himself, but still appreciated the thought that had gone into his obtaining them for her sake, since she guessed he had picked it with reminding her of home in mind. Which was ironic, the way things had played out, but the thought was what counted.

As the quintet of tiny robotic ladybugs buzzed around the room, she absent-mindedly picked a piece of copper off a small pile on her desk, chewed on it for a moment, and swallowed. The Headmaster had been right. Copper was good for digestion.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **Dun dun duuuuuuuuun. XD**

 **Well, that wraps up the Electria arc. Woo-hoo!**

 **Not to say that Tyria's character development is by any means done. Indeed, these events have really just been the beginning of a longer personal character arc that, by my current plan anyway, won't be completely wrapped up until Grand Magic Games. And between then and now, we still have Divine Caladrius, S-Class Trials, Key of the Starry Heavens, and the unnamed Hare arc that'll come between KOTSH and GMG. Whoo, this is gonna be good. ^^**

 **And, I have an announcement to make. To celebrate this story making it so far, in Chapter 50 we'll take a break from the story and hold a Q/A session for all the characters of The Guild Next Door! So you all have two and a half months from now to submit any question you like, and the best ones will be answered by Pierce and the gang! Peace!**

 **So, yeah. That's the end of the Electria arc (but not the end of Tyria's character development) and next week you'll see the opening and closing themes for the arc. Enjoy them!**

 **Oh, and yes, from here on out, Lync and Alice will be recurring main characters that are part of the guild. I know it's a little hypocritical of me to call this an OC story if it uses two characters from one of my childhood favourite animes, but . . in Bakugan canon, Lync died right after his crush on Alice convinced him to reform. We never even got to see his potential as a good guy. (Though he did have one of the most kickass death scenes I've ever seen - which is all the more reason that I want to explore his potential as a heroic character.) And I like that anime, but it always bothered me how, while the male leads from the first season stayed important, the females were sidelined during the second season and all but vanished afterwards. Alice was simply never seen again after S2, and we're never told why. So it might as well be because she got caught up in a war and then joined Phoenix's Eye, right?**

 **Anyway. I'm honestly not sure if this will be the extent of the crossover elements to the story, or if I might not be tempted to involve other personal favourite animes in the future. (I've already drawn some elements from Ajin - Demi-human and The Melancholy of Haruhi Susumiya as is, and I do have plans to use some stuff from Sword Art Online in the future.) I do have a vague idea about some kind of global treasure hunt in the future, and if I do do that, then the Phoenixes would inevitably visit Vestal and Vestroia, as well as revisiting Electria, and it's completely possible that other characters from Bakugan might appear then. I guess I'll just take what comes, either way. Peace!**

~P's E~

Space. An infinite abyss of . . metal debris. Blowing up a space station the size of a city, then (mostly) putting it back together and blowing it up again, generated a lot of junk.

And in that junk, there was a human-shaped figure.

Lord Rolfe was blackened and scorched, and his right leg and left arm had been completely incinerated by the explosions when the Alternative was destroyed. His yellow/bronze robes had been ripped asunder, and his eyes had decompressed in the vacuum and exploded into pussy messes. By all measures, he was clinically, cerebrally, utterly irrevocably dead.

An electric flicker of magic power ran through Rolfe's body, and the fingers on his sole remaining hand twitched.


	41. OT3: Glorious (Macklemore)

Chapter 41: OT3: Glorious (Macklemore)

 _You know I'm back, like I never left (I never left)_

Pierce runs across an open plain, flute in hand with a grin.

 _Another sprint, another step (another step)_

Tyria and Grace join him, looking resolute but excited.

 _Another day, another breath (another breath)_

As Sarph swoops in from above, the Sonic Boom, with Boomer driving, comes up behind them and keeps pace.

 _Been chasing dreams, but I never slept (I never slept)_

In a blur, Hare suddenly appears and, with a kick, smashes the camera.

 _I got a new attitude and a lease on life  
And some peace of mind_

Totomaru and Fleur appear on screen with Teslon in the background, standing back to back with arms folded.

 _Seek and I find I can sleep when I die  
Wanna piece of the pie, grab the keys to the ride_

Lync and Alice join them, Lync with a wicked grin and arm outstretched, while Alice smiles and waves.

 _And now I'm straight_

Artorias drops in from above, arms outstretched behind him with an affable smile.

 _I'm on my way, I'm on my way_

All eleven of the heroes (with Boomer still in the Sonic Boom) run across the field from before

 _Get out my wake, I'm running late, what can I say?_

For a moment, all of them pose around the Phoenix's Eye logo, printed on the grass.

 _I heard you die twice, once when they bury you in the grave_

Grace crosses her arms and phantasmagoric wings appear around her, signalling that she's invoking Dark Matter: Galaxy Rotation Wing.

 _And the second time is the last time that somebody mentions your name_

The attack hits Brain, who screams before collapsing to the ground.

 _So when I leave here on this earth, did I take more than I need?_

Lord Rolfe's rocket arcs into the sky.

 _Did I look out for the people or did I do it out of greed?_

It docks with the Alternative Weapons System, but a sudden explosion rips both crafts apart.

 _Legend, it's exodus searching for euphoria_

Tyria, on her TechType: Motorbike, rockets through the Electrian countryside.

 _Trudging through the mud to find the present, no ignoring us_

She shoots through a town as a corona of power appears around her and she shifts into TechType: Mark II.

 _Got 20,000 deep off in the street like we some warriors_

Her motorbike vanishes as she changes again into Mark III, forming metal wings out of gears and launching into the sky as tattoos appear down her arms and legs.

 _My mama told me never bow your head, woo!_

With a flash of light, she shifts into full Mark Infinity form as she lands on a hill, staring up at the sky as a silhouetted figure appeared in the clouds above her.

 _I feel glorious, glorious_

Time seems to accelerate as she stands still and a wind blows through the area, making the grass and trees rustle.

 _Got a chance to start again_

The figure in the clouds vanishes as the sky accelerates, sun crashing down, moon rising into the sky.

 _I was born for this, born for this_

The lights of Atsphuria's College flare to life in the countryside below her, and Tyria turns, looking down on the campus.

 _It's who I am, how could I forget?_

The moon passes and night turns back to day, as she continues staring down at the College, which seems to have appeared overnight.

 _I made it through the darkest part of the night_

Suddenly, still in full Mark Infinity form, Tyria is riding her Motorbike through country that is identifiably Fiorean.

 _And now I see the sunrise_

The yellow light of dawn shines around her as she drives.

 _Now I feel glorious, glorious_

She stops and dismounts, wings flexing behind her as she lands in a seemingly indistinct valley between two hills, with trees all around her.

 _I feel glorious, glorious_

Rubbing metal feet over the ground, Tyria soon uncovers a metal surface. The camera stills behind her head, as she looks down on a panel upon which is clearly written; 'Electrian Compendium'.

She stayed there for a moment, and then Lync turned off the camera and crouched down with her. "Amazing. It's all in here?"

Tyria phase-shifts out of Mark infinity and nods as she fixes her hair back into a ponytail. "Every bit,"

"I'm glad," Lync grinned, and Alice nodded, appearing between them. "It's good," she agreed as they covered it back up with dirt. "Like this, Electria has a chance,"

A/N

 **A/N**

 **Disclaimer: Song lyrics may have been altered to suit thematic values of the story.**

 **Can I just say how happy I am to have discovered this song before it came time to write this opening theme? Seriously. "Glorious" could veritably be Tyria's theme song. Heh. Peace!**


	42. CT3: Walking the Wire (Imagine Dragons)

Chapter 42: CT3: Walking the Wire

 _Do you feel the same when I'm away from you?_

Pierce, Boomer, Sarph, Artorias, Lync and Totomaru appear, looking to the right and covered in red.

 _Do you know the line that I'd walk for you?_

Tyria, Grace, Hare, Alice and Fleur mirror them, shaded in blue.

 _We could turn around, or we could give it up_

Nirvana strides across the Worth Woodsea.

 _But we'll take what comes, take what comes_

Suddenly, explosions erupt from each leg, and it collapses.

 _Oh, the storm is raging against us now_

Artorias regards the cultist's stronghold where he was held for six years with a quizzical, yet irritated, expression. He rolls his eyes.

 _If you're afraid of falling, then don't look down_

Grace averts her eyes from the testing facility where she was experimented on. She clenches her fists.

 _But we took the step, and we took the leap_

Tyria gazes at Atsphuria's College with a slightly sad, but confident, smile. She nods her head.

 _And we'll take what comes, take what comes_

Erik looks up at the Tower of Heaven with a dark look on his face. He grits his teeth.

 _Feel the wind in your hair_

Pierce hovers in the air, riding Raya who is gliding on a thermal. Likewise, Tyria is hanging in the sky by her Jetpack nearby, enjoying the breeze.

 _Feel the rush way up here_

The two soar over Magnolia, looking down at the snowed-in Phoenix's Eye guild hall.

 _We're walking the wire, love_

Beneath them, all of their friends in the guild smile and wave up at them.

 _We're walking the wire, love_

Tyria and Pierce exchange a glance and smile at each other, before soaring away into the distance.

 _We're gonna be higher, up_

Tyria gazes up at the sun, which for a moment seems to contain the Phoenix's Eye guild mark.

 _We're walking the wire, wire, wire_

Raya landed outside the Magic Council's prison building, and, with a quick tune, Pierce recalled Raya, before walking inside.

"You again," the clerk nodded. The blond was gratified to be recognised, and nodded. "Me again," he smiled. It was January 02, exactly one month since he'd last visited.

"I take it you're here for that Och member again," the clerk shrugged, and gestured. "You know the drill, same as last time,"

"You got it," Pierce smiled, spotting the guard advancing to lead him to the visiting room Lamar had arranged. "Hey, give Lahar my best, okay?"

The clerk didn't respond as the guard led him away, at least not in any way Pierce could recognise, and the Tamer made a mental note to write a letter or something to the councilman. Lahar was doing good by him and Erik, and he didn't want him to think he was ungrateful or anything.

Soon, he was back in the room with Erik. As soon as the door swung closed, Pierce immediately played the tune that would summon Cubelios. The purple snake was overjoyed to see her master again, and Erik returned the enthusiasm.

"It's good to see you," the Poison wizard finally greeted Pierce, who smiled and nodded. "Same to you, Erik. How's prison?"

"Same as always," Erik shrugged. "You know, it's nice,"

Pierce blinked. "What is? Prison?"

"No, not that. A couple of weeks ago, something occurred to me," Erik mused. "You're the only person I know who calls me by my name on a regular basis. I like it,"

The Tamer blinked again. "Really? But, surely the rest of the Och know it?"

"Sure, but they don't use it," Erik shrugged. "They're all too used to calling me Cobra. And of course that's what the guards call me too,"

"I see," Pierce nodded. "Does that make me your friend?"

"Well, we did meet by beating each other up," Erik thoughtfully pointed out, and Pierce had to stifle a chuckle. "So what? I first met one of my best friends and my adoptive sister like that,"

"Really?" Erik didn't bother hiding his amusement. "Well then. Alright," he shrugged. "Friends it is,"


	43. What They Missed

Chapter 43: What They Missed

 ** _Previously, on The Guild Next Door . . ._**

 _Totomaru collapsed to the ground, dead before he hit the floor. Tyria barely had time to scream before the spear pierced her throat, killing her instantly. The two halves of Artorias' body fell apart and bled out on the floor. A blast of magic energy smashed straight into Boomer, obliterating his guitar, burning through his suit and leaving an instantly-cauterised hole in his chest as it threw him backwards. Sarph suddenly stopped talking, on account of having a spear tip lodged in his throat. "Please, I-I surrender," Hare whimpered, staring up at the Fairy Hunter in fear. "Good," And, with a clean swipe, Erza Knightwalker cut Hare's head off, which fell to the ground and rolled to her feet, lifeless eyes staring up at her._

 _Raya's eyes went wide, looking at the weapon buried in her body. "Pierce," she softly whispered, before slumping forwards, held upright because Knightwalker had not pulled the weapon out of her body._

 _"Knightwalker, you are fucking dead," Pierce Kynigós growled, looking down at his rifle. She had taken his guild, and she had taken his girl. She'd left him with nothing but his gun . . so he'd use it._

 _~P's E~_

"Pierce! Pierce!" Grace's voice, sounding very panicked, echoed through the doors to the hall.

Pierce looked up from his lunch, surprised. It was January 5, a bit less than two weeks weeks since returning to Fiore after that whole fiasco in Electria, and only three days since visiting Erik in prison. Magnolia was still covered in snow, and, as far as he could see, nothing urgent had happened. There had been jobs and training and delicious sandwiches and bets about lunch as normal.

None of which explained why Grace appeared out of a hole in reality nearby him, threw herself into his arms and embraced him so tightly that he doubted his lungs would ever be quite the same. "You're alright!" she sobbed. "You're alright and you've not mean and you don't have a metal arm and you're not a giant lacrima and you're not going to be turned into magic energy by an evil king in another dimension and you're alright!"

Pierce blinked. "Uh . . pardon?"

"Ahem," The two looked up to see Garrotte standing on the table above them. "Y'all missed a humdinger of a panic,"

~P's E~.

Several minutes' worth of explaining to Pierce and the rest of the team later, they managed to piece together what had happened.

"So, wait. All of Magnolia, including our entire guild except for you two, got sucked into a hole in the sky and turned into a giant crystal in an alternate dimension called Edolas?" Pierce blinked.

"I dunno, that sounds like the kind of thing I'd remember," Boomer pointed out

"And we spent six days like that?" Sarph skeptically questioned.

"Check ya Archive's time log," Garrotte suggested, and Sarph obliged, opening a golden screen.

He blinked. "This says that the date's the eleventh . . . oh my. They're telling the truth,"

"Ya see?"

During the explanation, Pierce had gathered that one of the main reasons Grace was so upset was because she'd met some sort of other-dimensional counterpart to himself, and they hadn't gotten along. "So, uh, what's this about there being a me with a metal arm?"

~P's E~

Edolas, six days ago. After being convinced by Natsu, Carla and Garrotte that she wouldn't rescue Pierce and her guild by sitting around and crying, Grace had already been rather upset when the little group had discovered what they believed to be Fairy Tail inside a giant tree in the forest they had been in. She had reasoned that if Fairy Tail was here, Phoenix's Eye would surely be somewhere close, but hadn't wanted to separate from Natsu and Wendy.

And then she saw him. "Pierce!" she excitably squealed. There was something weird about him, sure - he had what looked like a metal glove on, and a camo jacket, and there was a rifle on the table next to him, which was weird because Pierce hated guns - but it was Pierce, it had to be!

Pierce Kynigós jerked in shock as he was tackle-hugged by an unfamiliar, crying little girl. "The hell - oi!" With a convulsion, he threw Grace off him. "Get off me!" he irritably spat.

"Pierce? Is something wrong?" Grace asked in surprise.

"Who the hell are you, anyway?" Pierce Kynigós demanded, standing up. The other denizens of Edolas' Fairy Tail all turned to look at them, which provided a convenient distraction for the other Earth Land wizards present or try to figure out what the hell was going on with 'their friends'.

"I . . Grace. Your Grace. Don't you . . remember?" Grace's smile drooped as she registered the thunderous expression on the face of her brother's counterpart.

"Ooh, Pierce. You been getting busy with a little -" The man behind the other Pierce didn't even get to finish his perverted sentence as the hunter whirled and delivered a one-hit knockout blow from his metal arm that sent the unfortunate man collapsing to the floor.

"Look. I dunno who the hell you think I am, but I'm Deadeye Pierce Kynigós, the most skilled hunter in Edolas!" In a fluid motion that only took a couple of seconds, Pierce Kynigós' arm lashed out, snatched up his rifle, cocked it and aimed directly at Grace's chest. "I've killed every beast on the face of this planet save for one, and I won't shed a tear over putting your head up on my wall with them! So if you know what's good for you, clear out of my face!" he barked.

"You . . kill beasts?" Grace asked, tears brimming in the corners of her eyes.

"What are you, a hippie?" the huntsman rolled his eyes. "Get on out of here, before my trigger gets itchy,"

"No. You're not Pierce. The real Pierce wouldn't say things like that," The tears ran freely now, and Grace balled her fists, expecting her reality magic to come and start destroying things around her without care. It was lucky for all involved that Edolas had sapped her power from her, for if Grace had had her magic at that moment, the Fairy Tail of Edolas would have been torn asunder. "You don't get to say things like that with Pierce's face!"

With that, she turned and ran out of the guild hall, leaving Natsu and Garrotte staring after her in confusion. "Ah'll go aftah her," the large, tan-coloured cat, who had been stuck in his battle form for reasons unknown since arriving in Edolas, declared, rushing after her.

Natsu watched him go, before turning back to look at Pierce Kynigós. "I dunno what's going on here, but that is _not_ Percy,"

~P's E~

Grace's hug tightened, and Pierce rubbed soothing circles on her back. "It's alright. He's gone now, off in his own world, where he can't get to us," The Dragon Slayer weakly nodded, her face still buried in Pierce's shirt.

"So, what else happened?" Sarph questioned.

"Turns out ah'm what's called an Exceed," Garrotte volunteered. "And mah species is native to Edolas - or we used to be, anyway. When that Reverse Animah activated, it sucked all us Exceeds out of Edolas and into Earth Land,"

"Exceed? Very interesting," As he spoke, Sarph entered the information on his Archive. "Continue,"

Garrotte would have said more, but was forestalled by a set of heavy footsteps. The group turned and looked to see Gajeel Redfox entering and approaching, looking decidedly awkward. "Hey," he waved. "So, uh, nice weather we're having, eh?"

Pierce raised a confused eyebrow. Since when did Gajeel make small talk about the weather?

"Alright. So I saw the half-pint run off after we all got back from that weird other place, and I figured I should go make sure she was alright," the Iron Dragon Slayer admitted. "Don't think this makes me soft or anything, though!"

Grace chuckled weakly. "Don't worry, Master Gajeel. I'm fine," she reassured him. Gajeel looked less than convinced, but nodded anyway. "Alright, if you say so, squirt,"

"Oh. I wondered where you'd gotten to," a new voice interrupted, sounding faintly irritated.

Garrotte turned and frowned when he saw a black Exceed that none of the Phoenixes recognised standing with Gajeel. "Well, boy howdy. If it ain't the boot-lickin' son of a rattlesnake whose ass ah kicked in our last meeting,"

"As I recall, that's not exactly how it happened," Panther Lily replied, raising an eyebrow.

~P's E~

"Thanks for the lift," Gajeel offered Garrotte as the cowboy cat, who was still stuck in his battle form, set him down on the edge of the island bearing the giant lacrima.

"Ain't nothing ta thank for," the tan Exceed shrugged. "My guild's in there too, and ah don't want them put out to pasture any more 'an you,"

Gajeel frowned for a second, trying to decipher the slang, but shrugged it off. "Alright, where to begin?"

Suddenly, the ground shook underfoot as a massive red sword cleaved through the ground between the two wizards and their prize. Garrotte's Aera wings reappeared, and he snatched up Gajeel and held onto him as the severed ground fell away beneath them.

"I'm afraid I can't allow that," The two turned to see Pantherlily, in full Captain get-up and wielding a humongous red sword, confronting them. Garrotte rolled his eyes, shaking his head. "Well, shucks. Ah guess my heritage really is lousy. Ya'll got the memo about that mad king down there planning to use this thing to smash Extalia and kill all Exceeds, right?"

"Indeed I did. And while I pray that it will not come to pass, I won't allow my world to suffer without magic!" Lily roared.

"This'n-tire world's filled with psychopaths and drama queens," Garrotte rolled his eyes as he dropped Gajeel near the lacrima again. "Ya'll get to work on that lacrima. Ah can handle this bum," With a leer, the cowboy cracked his barbed-wire whip menacingly. "Looks like we got ourselves a showdown, partner," His 'partner' raised an incredulous eyebrow.

"You're weird," Lily stated.

"Aww, come on, partner," With a flick, the metal cord lashed out at Lily, who flinched out of the way. "So, ya'll want a practice round or what? 'Cause ya gonna need it!" With that, Garrotte lunged at Lily, who immediately brought his sword down in an overhead arc. The Phoenix dodged sideways and cracked his whip, however without ground to bite into, the Barb magic failed to activate. "Aww, shucks," Garrotte moaned. "This is why I don't like flying,"

And then, swinging his sword sideways, Lily delivered a massive blow that sent Garrotte tumbling away in mid-air.

The tan Exceed righted himself, his whip trailing through the air. "Y'all'll regret that," he declared, flying forwards and lashing out with his wire. It caught Lily's sword and wrapped around it, preventing his opponent from pulling it back to deliver another mighty blow. "Try this," he commanded, gripping his whip with both hands and yanking hard, hoping to pull the weapon out of Lily's hands.

However, not only did Lily maintain his grip, but as soon as Garrotte's slackened, he pulled back himself, causing the whip's handle to slide out of the cowboy's own hands. With a contemptuous flick, he tossed it away, before rounding on the defenceless Garrotte. "I'm not sure what I'm supposed to be trying, but I think I like it,"

Gajeel groaned as Garrotte was thrown mercilessly into the side of the lacrima, where he collapsed with a dazed expression and several imaginary little sheriff stars, like the one on his chest, orbiting around his head. "This is what I get for expecting a Phoenix to fight my battles,"

~P's E~

"That ain't right!" Garrotte protested.

"Yes it is," Lily responded, folding his arms and maintaining a disposition that was as cool as a refrigerated kiwi fruit.

"Is not!"

"Yes. It is,"

"Not!" Garrotte shouted.

"As the only other person who was there," Gajeel interrupted. "It totally is,"

Garrotte irritably huffed, stalking away. "Just go back to ya prissy little fairy guild,"

'You heard him. To Fairy Tail!" Gajeel grinned at his new cat partner. "Later, losers!"

The Phoenixes exchanged brief glances, and shrugged. Let Gajeel say what he wanted. Everyone knew that Phoenix's Eye was better than Fairy Tail.

"So, did anything else happen that I should know about?" Pierce gently asked Grace, who thought to herself a bit. They'd been captured and drained of magic power - not that that had done much to her vast reserves, but still - and fought a giant mechanical dragon knight driven by the king that seemed to eat up what little magic was left in that weird place. Overall, nothing of note. "Not really,"

"Good," And, with that, the matter was settled . . until a thought occurred to Tyria. "Hey, wait. So, there's counterparts to everyone in Earth Land in Edolas?"

"I think so, yeah," Grace agreed.

"What was my counterpart like?" she immediately asked. "Ooh, and mine?" Boomer agreed. "I'm curious about mine too," Sarph admitted.

"I, uh, don't know. I didn't see anyone I recognised except Pierce. Although, um . . I did hear something about all the guilds in Edolas except Fairy Tail being wiped out," Grace admitted.

"And you said that this other Pierce was part of Fairy Tail? I find that strange," Sarph followed up as a disturbing possibility occurred to him.

"Yeah, no way I'd be in any other guild than Phoenix's Eye. Even if I was weird and scary," Pierce agreed.

"You don't think," Tyria spoke up before choking on her own words, suddenly looking quite pale, and Boomer winced. "That the Edolas Phoenix's Eye was wiped out and the Edolas Pierce was the only survivor?"

"Ya know, come to think of it, that might explain why that Pierce Kynigós fella was such a hardass," Garrotte mused.

"Oh . . uh . ." Grace trailed off, looking rather ill, and her adoptive brother took her hands. "Don't worry about it. We're never going to see them again anyway. Now, how about we go and get some ice cream to make you feel better?"

"Okay," the Dragon Slayer chirped, letting Pierce lead her away.

"Do you think that's true? That we'll never have to deal with Edolas again?" Tyria asked thoughtfully.

"Honestly? Ah dunno," Garrotte shook his head. "Ah guess we'll just have to keep an eye out for giant holes in the sky. Maybe even a Phoenix's Eye," he chuckled.

~P's E~

However, in the parallel world of Edolas, the aftermath of the adventure was playing out with rather less cohesion than in Earth Land.

Prince Mystogan, now King Mystogan (and rejecting his birth name of Jellal in favour of the title he had used during his time in exile in Earth Land) had been crowned and was in the midst of handing down punishment to the administration of the order that had preceded him, including his own father.

His gaze turned to King Faust, who looked gravely up st the boy sitting on the throne that had been his just yesterday. "Faust. Former King of Edolas, and architect of the demise of this world's magic power. Your punishment is exile. Before the sun sets, you will have left the walls of this city, and will never return. Understand?"

The King gravely nodded, accepting this. Mystogan blinked, forestalled from continuing by the uncharacteristic response. "You have no objection?"

"None that would be mine to make," Faust nodded. "That boy, before he left, I asked him a question. I asked if he enjoyed being in a guild," The former Fairy raised his eyebrows questioningly, and his father continued. "The way he smiled when he replied . . I'm never going to forget that,"

"I see," Mystogan raised his eyebrows thoughtfully, before continuing. He looked at Coco, kneeling next to the Captains. "Coco, after you reformed of your own free will and put your life at risk in an attempt to stop my father's plans, I cannot in good faith give you any punishment. You are pardoned,"

Coco started. "What? No! That's not fair!" she protested. "I did just as much as the others, I deserve to be punished with -"

"Silence!" Mystogan interrupted her. "As a newly crowned monarch, I will not allow my authority to be questioned," he explained in a softer tone of voice. "I will not punish you, but if you wish to subject yourself to the same conditions as your fellows, I will not prevent it," he clarified, and the Assistant Chief of Staff nodded, accepting this.

"As for the Captains of the Royal Guard, you are all responsible to an extent for the destruction that has ravaged our land of Edolas," Mystogan spoke to Erza Knightwalker, Hughes, Byro, and Sugarboy. "Therefore, for the foreseeable future, I condemn all of you to be bound by the walls of this city. You are disallowed from leaving and will do your utmost to help in the restoration of the city,"

Having realised what Mystogen had just said about authority applied equally to them, the four remaining captains all nodded and held their peace.

However, someone in the audience that had assembled to watch the administration be put on trial didn't. "That's it?!" a voice bellowed.

The King looked up with a curious eyebrow raised as a commotion heralded someone trying to shove his way to the front of the crowd. Eventually, a boy with a shock of blonde hair, piercing blue eyes and a metal left arm, wearing a khaki jacket and tan trousers, with a rifle slung over his shoulder, emerged, glaring furiously at the sentenced party. "That's all you're giving them?!" Pierce Kynigós challenged.

Mystogan raised his eyebrow further. "Come here," he commanded.

Expecting to get into an argument, the hunter was surprised enough by the request that he obeyed, walking across the empty space until he stood with the condemned between himself and the King. Mystogan, though, noticed that his gaze, or rather his glare, was not directed at him, but focused on Erza and Faust.

"Who are you?" the new monarch asked.

"Deadeye Pierce Kynigós, best hunter in Edolas, and only surviving member of the Phoenix's Eye wizarding guild. Thanks to a certain black-hearted monster," he spat with unrestrained vehemence at Erza Knightwalker.

"I see," Now Mystogen understood. This young man had probably watched Knightwalker slaughter everyone he'd known and loved. His hatred for her was surely immeasurable. "You want revenge,"

"Revenge? That's not a strong enough word for what I want," he hissed. "I want to make her suffer, just as she made me and my family suffer!" Pierce Kynigós roared. "I want her to feel the pain of a thousand deaths, for every murder she's committed. Then I'll cut her head off, stuff it, and mount it on my wall!"

"Is that all that you want?" Mystogan asked.

Pierce Kynigós paused, frowning. "What do you mean?"

"What would you do after that?" the King pressed his point.

"Well . . I dunno. Keep hunting,"

"Hunting for what?"

"I'll think of something," the hunter dismissed the question.

"Or I could make you a proposition," Mystogan suggested.

Pierce blinked. "Like what?"

"There are several empty positions within my new government, and I think you have the drive and determination to take charge of the Royal Guard. I can tell that you have the potential to make Edolas a better place for your contributions," Mystogan was never one to mince words. Actually, he realised, he had probably said more in the last couple of days than he had in all the years that he had spent in Earthland. He hoped that being King wouldn't involve too much more of this talking business.

The hunter paused. He'd spoken up to get revenge, not to get hired. He wasn't prepared to make a life-changing decision on the spur of the moment. "I'll need to think about it,"

"I understand," Mystogan nodded. "But I also want you to understand that, as King, I can't spend my time thinking about the past. Edolas is in a state of crisis, and every resource must be put to use reestablishing the world order. So, for the time being, at least, put aside your vendetta and help rebuild. You won't be able to bring your guild back, but you can honour their memory by ensuring that their deaths were not in vain,"

"I'll think about that too," Pierce Kynigós curtly responded, turning and walking away. Mystogan thoughtfully watched him go, noting with a near-invisible smile that he had, at the very least, refrained from using his gun to kill Knightwalker and Faust then and there.

"Guards, provide Faust with a week's worth of food, a pack, and a horse, and escort him to the gates," Mystogen commanded. "Also, show the former captains to their cells,"

~P's E~

The next day, rebuilding efforts began. King Mystogen was pleased to see that the captives threw everything they had into atoning for their sins - and he was surprised and somewhat amused when the Fairy Tail guild of Edolas, rather than disband, seemed to transform into an odd-jobs business. He had yet to receive a response from Pierce Kynigós, but had been so bogged down in royal administration that he had not the time to reflect on this state of affairs.

However, the situation rapidly returned to his mind when he heard a report from a guard that Erza Knightwalker had disappeared while on lunch break. His first instinct was that she was attempting an escape, but that didn't sound right . . and then he remembered the threats that the hunter had made in his presence.

"Tell the men to look for Pierce Kynigós, as well as Knightwalker. I suspect that he might be involved," Mystogan commanded. The temporary captain of the guard, who had reached the same conclusion but still wasn't sure that the new King wouldn't take suggestions badly, nodded. "Yes, sir,"

The search was fruitless, though - evidently the hunter was good at covering his tracks. And so the niggling concern was pushed to the back of his mind for the time being . . . at least, until a rather sickening report made its way to King Mystogen's desk.

Erza Knightwalker's body had been found in a muddy ditch, covered in bruises, scars, and displaying all manner of torture.

And lacking its head.

Mystogen immediately recalled that Kynigós had threatened to mount Knightwalker's head on his wall, and, even though the evidence was only circumstantial, he somehow knew the hunter was to blame.

"Issue a warrant for Pierce Kynigós' arrest," he commanded the captain, before pausing in thought. Knightwalker hadn't been the only one Kynigós blamed for his guild's death. He had been equally vehement towards . . "And track down the former King. If Pierce Kynigós is responsible for Knightwalker's death, then Faust will be his next target,"

A/N

 **A/N**

 **And that is where we leave the unfolding saga of Pierce Kynigós for another main-universe story arc!**

 **Also, yeah. That was Edolas. Sorry for skipping over it, but . . well, aside from those scenes I flashback-wrote, the entire arc would have been just the same except with Grace and Garrotte tagging along with Natsu, Wendy, Happy and Carla and making basically no difference. Plus . . to be honest, I didn't like the Edolas arc much. I appreciate that it provides the Exceeds a backstory, and it had its moments (the Dorma Anim was awesome in a horrible way) but, overall, it's my least favourite arc in the whole of Fairy Tail. (As it happens, Edo-Pierce voiced one of my biggest problems with the arc - Erza Knightwalker is stated to be a bloodthirsty psychopath who personally killed hundreds, if not thousands, of wizards. And what's her punishment? A restraining order and** ** _community service_** **. Tch.) That said, my objection with the arc is more with the execution than the concept, and, as I've said before, Edolas will have a role to play in the future of this story. {chuckles darkly and rubs hands} I can't wait for the Pierces to meet each other . . . heheheh.**

 **Though, to be honest, Edolas** ** _very nearly_** **gets beaten out in terms of 'me not liking it' by the anime filler Daphne arc, which is why, while I'm on that subject, I have decided that the Daphne arc is non-canon to the TGND universe. Or, at least, I'm not writing anything for it. Maybe it did happen and Phoenix's Eye just shrugged and went "This is obviously Fairy Tail's mess, let them clean it up,". Either way, I'm not putting it in the story.**

 ** _However_** **, the other anime filler arcs, Key of the Starry Heavens and Zodiac Eclipse, WILL be part of the story - or, at least, KOTSH will be. Zodiac Eclipse will be like Galuna Island and the Tower of Heaven (and the eventual Sun Village arc); happening in the background with the Phoenixes taking no part in it.**

 **Anyway. Quick reminder again about the Q/A in Chapter 50 - speaking of which, there seems to be a bit of a misconception. The idea is that you ask the** ** _characters_** **questions, not** ** _me_** **. Peace!**


	44. Taking Over

Chapter 44: Taking Over

 **Merry Christmas, everyone! To celebrate the holiday, I've decided to give you all the Christmas present of not only an extra chapter this week, but the longest chapter in the story by word count to date! So don't miss either of them!**

 **A/N**

 **A/N**

"Alice, could you take up Master's lunch? She's busy with paperwork upstairs, and I think she'll appreciate something to break up the monotony," Sarah suggested, presenting the orange-haired girl with a platter of hot food.

"Sure," Alice smiled, scooping up the tray and being careful not to spill the drink. Because of her pacifist nature, she refused on principle to take any jobs that might involve conflict, which, unfortunately, meant that there weren't too many jobs she could take. So she'd taken a part-time occupation working at the guild's bar with Sarah.

She cheerfully hummed to herself as she strode through the hall, ignoring the lecherous looks of the bar patrons, and headed up the stairs, making for the doors leading into -

 _Yellow spikes. Twin blue triangles. A wicked smile._

Alice froze with a quiet gasp, freezing in place with one foot raised. No. Not again. She couldn't -

She overbalanced, and shrieked as she fell back down the stairs, causing the food to spill all over her dress, and collapsed with a moan at the base of the stairs.

"Alice!" Sarah gasped, rushing over, but Lync got there first. He was standing nearby, helping her up, brushing bits of food off her dress, by the time she had reached them.

"Did it happen again?" he asked, and Alice weakly nodded. "Are you alright?"

"Did what happen?" Sarah asked, and her new aide shook her head. "I don't wanna talk about it," she shook her head.

Now Sarah knew something was wrong. She'd only known Alice for a bit less than a month, but she'd observed that she was usually quite prim and organised. For her to use a slurred word like 'wanna', she had to be extremely upset. But she knew better than to press the matter. "Alright. How about you go and sit down, and I'll get you a nice drink before I make Master a new lunch?"

Eventually, this was all done, and Lync sat with Alice at the bar as Sarah busied herself in the kitchen. "What did he say this time?" the Vestal quietly asked.

"He . . he likes the guild. He thinks it's cooler than the college," Alice offered, and Lync snorted. "Fat chance. I _miss_ the college,"

"He also thinks we should be careful around the guild master, because he senses something off about her," she stated.

"I'm down with that," Lync agreed. "The old hag's shifty,"

"You just don't like her because she tried to strangle you when you first met her," Alice tried to distract herself by poking fun at her boyfriend, who good-naturedly chuckled. "I'll admit to bias," he conceded.

Spotting Sarah carrying the master's replacement lunch, Alice stood up, not minding that she was still covered in spilt food. "I'll take that up," she offered.

Sarah pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Are you sure?"

"Yes,"

"Alright," the barmaid nodded, offering her colleague the platter, and Alice bustled away once more. This time, she made it to the doors with no unexpected mishaps, and vanished inside.

"So, _who_ likes the guild and thinks you should be careful around Master?" Sarah asked, leaning over the bar towards Lync, who blanched at the attention - okay, there was definitely something up. Lync normally lapped up attention like fine wine, so if he was actually reluctant to discuss a topic, there was definitely something _interesting_ going on. And Sarah lived for the _interesting_.

"No one," the Vestal spluttered. Sarah didn't buy it. "Alright," she indulgently, but disbelievingly, smiled.

~P's E~

"Master?" Alice called as she entered Feng's sitting-room.

"Up here!" a voice echoed from above.

Spotting the stairs, Alice headed upwards and found herself in a study of sorts, with papers piled up every wall and Feng seated at a desk in the centre. "Ah, Alice," she greeted her. "I heard you took something of a tumble,"

"Was it that loud?" Alice asked, slightly shyly.

"Something like that," Feng nodded, deciding it would be best to maintain the secrecy of the fact that she often used her memory magic to read her brats' minds and see what was going on. Immoral, possibly, but Feng usually found that things worked out better if she knew everything that was going on and could work behind the scenes to ensure that it all worked out for the best. She was doing so now, scanning Alice's memories of walking across the guild hall, up the stairs, and -

A sudden dark presence rose up out of seemingly nowhere and, with enraged protectiveness, forced her out of Alice's mind. Feng mentally recoiled, unsure what to make of this secondary presence within Alice's mind, and retreated into her own mind, but it seemed she had provoked a beast, as the darkness followed her into her own refuge. Feng mentally demanded what the presence was.

The darkness within Alice's core responded, and seemed to recognise her when she spoke to it. It greeted her by name, seeming at least somewhat respectful, and remarked that it was pleasant to make her acquaintance, before continuing on to say that it existed to keep Alice safe from harm, and thus hoped that they would never again meet.

With that, the presence was gone. Feng frowned slightly. Her first instinct was to assume that Alice had a split personality of some kind, but after considering this rejected the thought. The presence had been magical, she was certain of that, though it was a magic of a kind she had never before experienced. There was more to Alice Gehabich than met the eye, she was sure of it now . . and she was gone.

Alice evidently hadn't even noticed the mental contact with whatever was inside her, and had left the room after delivering her lunch while she was in a telepathic stupor.

Deciding she could allow things to continue as they were for the time being, as the presence, though dark, didn't seem like a threat, Feng shrugged and started her lunch.

~P's E~

Pierce sighed to himself as he sat down at a table. Tyria and Grace settled around him, and Kit perched on the bench nearby.

"That fight was so much fun! It was so cool when you hit all those bandits at once with your gear wings!" Grace grinned.

"That's nothing. You were awesome, with the way you smashed their getaway car!" Tyria replied, giggling.

"Yeah, and Inky was brilliant as well. With, y'now, all the ink," Grace agreed.

"That was nothing. Did you see my contribution?" Kit eagerly asked.

The two girls looked at him curiously. "You weren't in the fight,"

"But I cheered!" Kit protested.

"Well you did good cheering!" Grace commended him with a smile.

It was around now that the two noticed that Pierce wasn't joining in with the celebration. "Pierce? Is something wrong?" Tyria asked.

"No, I'm fine," the Tamer autonomously replied.

"That's not a fine voice. That's a not-fine voice," Grace pointed out.

Pierce sighed. "What did I do during that fight?" he asked.

The girls and yokai looked at one another. "You, um, summoned Inky," Grace put forward.

"And you directed us. That last bandit would have gotten away if you hadn't shouted for me to hit him," Tyria agreed.

"Did I hit anyone?" Pierce questioned.

"Well, no, but -"

"Did I do any of the actual fighting?" he continued.

"Technically not, but -"

"Can either of you think of a time when I've actively engaged in a fight, rather than just directing my beasts and teammates?" the blond pressed the point.

The two thought. "There was that time you punched Cobra in the face," Grace offered.

"That was three months ago," Pierce deadpanned.

"Well . . um . ." Tyria thought, but slowly realised he was right. Pierce didn't personally engage in any of the fights. Except on the rare occasions when he merged with Kit, but even then it was Kit who controlled their body, not Pierce.

"I just feel like I'm not doing enough, you know?" Pierce sighed. "I want to be more than the cheerleader in the back of the group . . but I also don't want to stop being a Beast Tamer. I love my beasts, and I enjoy fighting with them. Even though . . I'm not actually doing much fighting,"

Sarph sat down at the table, armed with a plate of Quad-S Meatlover's. "Well, maybe you should learn a second kind of magic?" he suggested. "I mean, I use three,"

Pierce raised his eyebrows. "Yeah, maybe. But if I did learn a second kind of magic, then what would it be?"

He paused, noticing that Tyria and Grace, seated opposite him, had their eyes fixed on something behind him. He frowned, as his flute appeared in a flash of Requip magic, and turned around - instantly coming face to face with the face of an instantly recognisable, tanned Fairy.

"I think I've got an idea," Kana Alberona grinned, and Pierce scrambled back at the sudden proximity of their faces.

"Aren't you in Fairy Tail?" Tyria blinked.

"Yeah, but Fairies and Phoenixes are friendly rivals. And as long as I can drink in peace up here, I'm more 'friendly' than 'rival'," the alcoholic explained. "If what I've heard about your Beast Tamer magic is right, I think I know just the guy who can show you some new tricks,"

~P's E~

"You want me to _what_?" Elfman Strauss demanded when Kana came up to him, Pierce, Grace, Tyria and Sarph in tow, and asked him to teach Pierce Beast Soul Take Over magic.

"This might actually work out quite well," Sarph mused, doing his best not to feel slighted by the fact that the local drunkard had thought of this before he had.

Elfman regarded Pierce, who, in spite of being only a couple of years younger, was less than half his size. "Well then. Are you man enough to learn the kind of magic that a real man uses?!" he barked.

Pierce's beast taming instincts kicked in, recognising this manly bellow as a declaration of dominance, and telling him that he couldn't submit if he wanted to get anywhere. "Only if you're man enough to teach it to me!" he challenged right back at him, drawing up to his full height and yelling at the top of his lungs.

"Alright!" Elfman grinned, but paused. "Hang on a second. Aren't you that Beast Tamer wizard? That guy who keeps all his pets inside his flute? You don't mean to use them in Take Overs, do you?"

"If they're alright with it, I don't see why not," Pierce shrugged, deciding to let the 'pets' comment slide.

"I don't think that's gonna work. Take Over wizards contain the souls of the beings they allow to Take Over them within their bodies. If you try to take over your beasts, you might lose the ability to summon them as their own entities," Elfman explained.

Pierce blinked, and frowned. "Alright, we're finding another kind of magic for me to learn," he declared.

"Wait, what?!" Kana demanded.

"I'm not going to learn a magic whose use would have adverse effects on my partner beasts," the Tamer declared. "That would completely destroy the bond of trust I have with them,"

Elfman considered this, and nodded. "I getcha," he agreed. "Doing any less would be unmanly,"

"Alright. Anyone have any other ideas?" Pierce asked the rest of his group, but Tyria seemed deep in thought. "Actually, I think there _might_ be a way for you to use Take Over without crippling your beasts. There's someone else we need to talk to first, though,"

"Oh, oh-kay," Pierce frowned, casting a glance back at Elfman. "Why are you looking at me like that? I'm coming with you, of course!" the real man declared. "I'm seeing this through to the end like a real man!"

~P's E~

"Really? Well, that sounds like an interesting challenge," Alice Gehabich nodded thoughtfully.

Elfman looked at the orangette in confusion. "Uh . . what's she gonna do again?"

"Alice studies the semantics and operations behind magic. Do you understand how your magic works?" Tyria asked.

"Uh, I take over the souls of the monsters I beat in combat?" the dark-skinned man shrugged.

"But how do you do that?" the tech wizard pressed, and the Fairy scratched his head in confusion. "Uh . . . alright, fine, I don't know," he admitted, before suddenly burying his face in his hands. "It's not manly to not know how your magic works!" he sobbed.

"Don't worry, I can explain it to you," Alice reassuringly offered her, and Elfman looked at her in surprise. "You know?"

Suddenly the massive man was grovelling at her feet. "You're more real man than I am!" he declared.

Alice stared in confusion, thinking, 'Oh god this is ironic,'. "Anyway!" she hastily changed the subject. "I'll try to dumb it down . . Would I be correct to assume that your Take Over magic operates based on a decimal point operating system where your basic form is considered to be an integer and the emergency shutdown restores the integer, while activating separate forms with a magic circle that has varied runic overlays for each?"

Elfman stared dumbly in response. He was still stuck on what a decimal was.

"Keep in mind that Electria is a bit ahead of Fiore in stuff like this," Tyria advised her friend.

"Right," Alice nodded, before turning to Pierce. "And you summon your beasts with music . . so I suppose that's a pitch-based code entry function using a similar but more complicated decimal point operating system which creates a direct, intangible ethernano flow between you and the summoned beast in order to maintain your reserves' alignment with the pocket dimension lacrima?"

Pierce was, unfortunately, just as clueless. "Say that again, but slower?" he requested.

Alice tried to repress a sigh. "Nevermind. I'll figure it out myself," she decided. "Can I see your flute?"

Wordlessly, Pierce Reajipped his flute and handed it over. Holding it in one hand while motioning with the other, Alice seemed to pull a purple screen out of the flute, copy it, and place the copy in her pocket, before pushing the original back inside it and giving Pierce back his flute. She then proceeded to repeat the process with Elfman's chest, who flinched in surprise as she did. "Uh . . what was that?"

"I just used my Amaterasu Code to make copies of both of your magics. Give me a few hours, and I'll work out a way to combine them safely," Alice smiled.

Pierce raised an eyebrow, but Tyria grabbed his wrist to forestall him. "Don't worry. Alice is the best there is at this kind of thing. She'll work it out,"

"Okay," Pierce nodded, deciding to trust his friends.

"So, should we come back after dinner or what?" Elfman asked.

"That sounds good to me," Alice nodded. "We'll meet at our guild hall,"

~P's E~

Later that night, the sun was setting on the day when Pierce, Tyria, Elfman and Alice gathered in one of the booths in the hall. "Alright, so this is what I've come up with," Alice smiled, seeming enthusiastic, as she flexed her fingers, before spreading them out wide. A purple hologram appeared in mid-air, shaped like an upended 'Y' with several rods pointing out of the top, each with a coloured ball on the end. Lines of indistinguishable text floated through and around the entire thing.

"It's . . very . . pretty?" Elfman guessed.

Alice chuckled. "No, silly. These up here represent the beasts Pierce has tamed," she gestured to the coloured balls, "and this central pipe is his flute. When I apply this to Pierce and his flute, it should modify the way that his magic operates so that he can choose to either summon the beast in the way that he normally does, or merge with it in the form of a Take-Over," she explained. "This way, the chosen beast's soul is only within your body while the spell is active, and is returned to being inside the flute as normal once it's done," the Amaterasu user continued. "No permanent side-effects,"

"That's brilliant!" Pierce grinned. He had no idea how Alice had done this, but the fact that she could . . it gave him new respect for the pacifistic wizard.

"So, you want to try it?" she eagerly asked.

"Go for it," the Tamer nodded, and, with a flick, the construct of magic energy split into two smaller versions of itself, which were sent spiralling into Pierce and his flute.

He braced himself, but paused. "Um, I didn't feel any different," Pierce admitted, rubbing himself over as though he expected to merge with one of his beasts at any second. "So, can I use Take Over magic now?"

"I wish . . I'm not good enough to instantly teach someone a new kind of magic. I just gave you a medium to safely use it," Alice clarified. "You'll still need Elfman to actually teach it to you,"

"Aww yeah!" the man declared. "Don't you worry. I'll get you with a good grasp of the basics in a couple of days LIKE A REAL MAN!"

~P's E~

Training started the next day. "Is there a reason you're here?" Pierce asked Grace, Tyria and Sarph. "I'm supporting you, like you supported me!" the Dragon Slayer eagerly replied.

Sarph shrugged. "This will be a good opportunity to extend my knowledge of transformation magic,"

"Same here. I wanna know how Fiorean transformation magic compares to the Electrian kind," Tyria agreed.

"Alright! Group sessions are manly!" Elfman bellowed, raising his fists in the air. "Anyway, Take Over is really just a certain style of transformation magic. So you gotta learn transformation basics before they can be specifically applied to Take Overs,"

"Alright, and those are?"

"Firstly, basic transformation magic allows you to change your physical appearance, like facial features. Unfortunately, it won't let you transform clothing. For beginners, it's good to work with a template, like someone you know well who has a similar build to you," There was a poof of magic, and suddenly Elfman was the spitting image of Sarph. The girls blinked in surprise at this, frantically looking between Sarph and Sarph-Elfman to make sure they hadn't just changed places and outfits.

"Alright," Pierce nodded.

Elfman returned to his normal appearance. "Now you try," He looked at the spectators, and focused on the Electrian girl in the middle. "She looks about your build, try changing into her,"

"Tyria," After dealing with Natsu, Pierce had no patience for anything less than a person's correct name from Fairy Tail wizards, and Elfman nodded. "Right. Up!" he commanded, and, obligingly, Tyria stood up.

"Alright, give it a shot. Try to get as many details right as you can," Elfman commanded.

"Okay," It felt like there was some factor to all this that Pierce hadn't thought of, but he dismissed the concern, focusing on Tyria. It wasn't difficult to keep all of her features in mind, he'd spent enough time admiring them since meeting her . . the gentle curves of her face, her smooth, supple limbs, perfectly shaped thighs, electric blue hair that sparkled in the sunlight - right, transformation magic. "Transform!" Pierce commanded, reaching for the magic inside him and commanding it to act in new ways.

There was a poof of smoke. Sarph and Grace gasped, and Tyria raised her eyebrows in amazement.

Standing before them was a near-perfect duplicate of Tyria in Pierce's clothes. Sarph watched as Pierce inspected his - her? - fingers and their new skin tone in amazement. He hadn't done it quite right - his eyes, rather than being Tyria's electric blue, were still his usual brown. But otherwise . . Sarph's train of thought was abruptly derailed as an almost sensual moan emerged from Tyria-Pierce's mouth. The knight realised that he was touching his transformed chest. "So real . ."

Tyria blinked, blanched, and balled her fists, before pausing. "Wait, does that qualify as perverted behaviour?" she asked Elfman. However, before he could respond, Pierce collapsed, overwhelmed by sheer sensory overload, and reverted back to his normal form.

"I'd say give him a pass," Sarph advised his teammate, who sat back down.

Recovering, Pierce sat up, blushing furiously and rubbing at his nose to hide the nosebleed that had briefly emerged there. "I'm not doing that again," he ascertained.

"Understandable," Elfman nodded. "I guess it wasn't very manly of me to suggest a novice use transformation magic like that. Do you lot know any other people who'd be willing to help with practice?" he questioned. "Because I could call someone from Fairy Tail, but they might not be happy to help a Phoenix,"

Tyria and Sarph looked at one another and began counting off. "Obviously not Hare," Sarph immediately eliminated the temperamental Speed wizard, because of both temper and gender. "Nor Alice . . maybe Lync?" Tyria suggested.

"He's a whole foot shorter than Pierce," Sarph shook his head.

"What about Boomer?" Grace suggested.

"He's even shorter than Lync and fatter than Pierce, too," Tyria shot the idea down. "But we do know one boy who's around his build,"

They shared a glance at Pierce, who had his eyes squeezed shut tight and was shaking his head, as though to try to dislodge something within it. "Assuming you didn't just traumatise him in regards to transformations," Sarph reasoned, and Tyria glared at him. "Don't say it like this is my fault!"

~P's E~

"So, Pierce is learning transformation magic?" Artorias quietly commented as he was led to the training grounds outside the guild hall. "It's about time. I would have thought that was an obvious choice for him,"

Sarph, hearing this, fumed.

"Alright," Elfman grinned, glad to see that Artorias had arrived. "Transformation magic's second stage is changing your appearance and your clothing. See if you can become this guy's mirror image,"

"Right," Pierce nodded, focusing on Artorias and trying to memorise every detail of his face. "Transform!"

With a poof, his features and clothing suddenly became a perfect duplication of Artorias', and the original had the disconcerting experience of meeting his own golden eyes. Suddenly, he had new understanding of why people found them creepy - not that that excused his past treatment, but still.

Elfman frowned, approaching Pierce and feeling his transformed arm, now coated by Artorias' robe. He tugged on it experimentally, and Pierce winced. He meant to cry, "Ouch!" but his vocal chords wouldn't cooperate and the word came out muffled and silenced.

"Not bad, but you made a rookie mistake,"

"What's . . that?" Artorias-Pierce replied, trying to acclimatise himself to the fact that Artorias' soft-spoken manner wasn't a choice, as he had always thought, but that there was actually something wrong with his larynx that forced him to speak quietly. Which actually explained a fair bit.

"You made your clothes part of your body," Elfman demonstrated how his sleeve had seemingly become glued to his skin by trying and failing to work a finger inside the robe. "Try it again,"

~P's E~

It took a couple of hours, but Pierce eventually got the hang of keeping clothes and body separate. "Okay, so that was the intermediate stage of transformation magic, right? What's the advanced?"

Elfman chuckled. "Intermediate? No. More like beginner part two," he corrected Pierce. "Advanced transformation magic involves completely reshaping your body, and it's a lot harder than what we've been doing all morning. You're not ready for that yet,"

"Oh. Okay then," Pierce sighed.

"Luckily, you should be able to grasp the basics of Take Over magic without needing to understand the advanced stage, but I should warn you against trying to do a Take Over on a winged being before then," Elfman reassured him.

"No wings? That's a shame," Pierce sighed. So that ruled out practising on Raya, Victoria or Cubelios . . but he hadn't planned to start with them anyway.

"Take Over's kind of instinctive. Just reach within you and draw out the beast you want to Take Over you, and let yourself merge with it," Elfman advised.

"Alright," Pierce nodded, focusing. He felt a conduit of magic between himself and something else - the lacrima in his flute. He'd already talked with all his beasts, and they were all okay with the idea of participating in a Take Over that didn't have any adverse effects . . at least, all except Cubelios. Pierce still had no way to verbally communicate with the giant snake, and was reluctant to do anything of the sort without her explicit permission.

Grasping within himself the conduit and reaching out towards the beast he wanted, Pierce clumsily activated the new spell. "Take Over: Werewolf!"

Knox's howl echoed through his mind, and Pierce braced himself for transformation. If it was anything like Yokai Unison, it -

His body burst out in silver-grey fur, as his shirt vanished into the magic. Pierce's ears reshaped into lupine folds of flesh, shifting to the tops of his head, and his teeth sharpened into carnivorous fangs as his nose and mouth extended into a short muzzle, which bit together as his spine lengthened into a short tail. Pads and claws grew out of his hands and feel as his legs shifted into a digitigrade stance, and as the transformation completed, Pierce could feel Knox alongside him, submitting to him, letting him take over.

He slumped, letting his body hunch forwards, and, on instinct, his tongue lolled out of his mouth, dripping with perspiration. Elfman watched intently. There was always the danger, with Take Over magic, that the beast could force control. It didn't seem likely, not when he knew that Pierce and his werewolf were friends, but it was possible.

Eventually Pierce straightened, adjusting to his altered legs. Artorias, Tyria, Grace and Sarph watched intently, waiting to see if Pierce was alright.

"Ha-ROOOOOOOOOO!" Raising his head to the air, Pierce howled in sheer joy, before rushing over with speed they hadn't thought him capable of and enveloping Tyria in a hug, instinctively licking at her face. Tyria closed her eyes, surprised by the sudden display of affection. "Pierce? Are you feeling alright?"

"I've never felt better!" he exclaimed. "This is brilliant! Like I wanna run and fight and hug people and just do stuff!"

Sarph raised his eyebrows. Pierce usually wasn't so energetic and frivolous. "Is this normal?" he asked Elfman, who shrugged. "For it to work first time? Not really. He must have a strong bond with his beasts. That's manly!"

"No, the personality change," the golden warrior clarified. Elfman shrugged again. "Sometimes? Some transformations do affect the way people think . . my sister has this really scary form that makes really obsessive," Suddenly his face brightened in realisation. "Oh, hey! I think I heard something about feel-good whatsits being released in a person's head when they transform or something?"

Tyria, wiping her face and hoping Pierce wouldn't try for a spontaneous hug-and-lick-fest again, nodded in agreement. "He's right. I can't believe I forgot. Transformation magic releases dopamine in the user's brain so that the pain of their body reshaping itself is cancelled out. Over time, you build up a resistance to it until you don't even notice it, but it hits people hard the first few times they transform. Pierce is basically drunk on his own magic,"

"Really? I didn't know that," Grace commented.

"Well, the first time I transformed with magic was when I was seven. Nine years ago. I've had a long time to adapt," Tyria explained, before pausing and looking around. "Uh, where did he go?"

The five wizards blinked and looked around. Sure enough, Pierce was nowhere to be seen.

"He said he wanted to run and fight," Sarph trailed off in faint concern.

"Don't worry. He's a beginner, he probably won't be able to hold the transformation for more than an hour. He'll be fine," Elfman reassured them. "In the meantime, I'm gonna get lunch. When he comes back, tell him to swing by and I'll keep teaching him like a real man!"

~P's E~

Halfway through lunch, Pierce returned to their table, back to being human, with leaves strewn through his hair and clothes. "What did I miss?" he asked, sitting down and looking as dignified as he could with all the raw materials needed for a bird's-nest in his hair.

Tyria stifled a chuckle. "I think the better question is, what did _we_ miss?"

"Agreed. I heard what happened - man, I wish I'd been there to watch. It sounds hilarious," Boomer weighed in with a grin.

"I still can't believe you licked Tyria," Grace giggled, and Pierce felt his patience wearing thin. "Did you enjoy the hug?"

At this cheeky question from the young Dragon Slayer, heat rose to both Pierce and Tyria's cheeks.

Lync paused near the table, having overheard. "Well, it's about time you got a boyfriend. I was starting to think you'd taken an oath of chastity while I wasn't looking or something," he teased Tyria.

The Electrian in question made a noise reminiscent of an upset kitten as her eyes shot to the size of dinner plates and foreign mental images entered her mind.

Pierce hastily stood up. "Uh . . I need to go see . . um . . a man about a dragon!" With that, he was gone.

"Yeah, I also need to . . bye!" Tyria rapidly vanished too.

The rest of their group looked amongst each other. After a moment, Sarph turned and eyeballed Russell in his white leather jacket and brown dreadlocks, over at the bar. "Hey, Russell? Does this mean I win the bet?"

"Nah. They gotta kiss," the Paper wizard retorted.

"What bet?" Lync curiously asked.

"Oh, after Pierce brought a girl home last August, we all figured it was only a matter of time until they hooked up. I've got five thousand jewels on them getting together within a year of her joining," Sarph cheerfully explained.

"So, still six months to get them together? Hah. Forget kissing, by then they'll -" Lync was suddenly interrupted by a broom whup to the face. "Hey!" he complained, before realising that his own girlfriend was on the other end of said broom.

"Not in front of young ears!" she hissed, gesturing with her eyes at Grace, before realising what she was saying. "This is our friend we're talking about! Not at all, have some respect!"

"But surely you can see how thick the sexual tension is between them," Boomer protested.

"Of course I can. But, that doesn't mean we should discuss it," Alice primly shook her head.

"Now, let's just hope that the secondary bet is still on the table, no matter how unlikely it may seem," Wesley spoke before continuing, "Wesley mused, fingering his chin thoughtfully,"

"Secondary bet?" Alice parroted with a raised eyebrow. She was aware of Wesley's habit of narrating his own actions.

"Yeah, the Ball wizard grinned," Wesley replied with a smile. "He then went on to say, considering how many -" Russell suddenly grabbed his drinking buddy's ear and pulled him away from Alice. "Ix-nay on the arem-hey et-bay while one of the, uh, volved-inay arties-pay is within, um, arshot-eay!" the man commanded.

"Kay-oay, esley-Way odded-nay," his friend replied.

"What's all that about?" Lync questioned Sarph while Alice tried to decode the Pig Latin.

"Uh, let's just say it's something I'm happy to be betting against," Sarph suddenly looked awkward, and the Vestal would have pried further, but Alice suddenly snapped her fingers and looked rather cross. "What do you mean, _harem bet_?" she demanded, glaring at Wesley.

"I think this is the part where I take you to go get some ice cream," Boomer decided it was time to pull Grace out of the conversation. Grace took a second to weigh her curiosity as to the conversation's direction against the prospect of ice cream, and decided it was no contest. "Okay," she agreeably chirped.

"Well, think about it, Wesley explained with a nonchalant shrug," Ignoring the warning looks Russell and Sarph were casting him, Wesley continued digging his own grave. "He went on to say, since last August, Pierce has brought five girls back to the guild. Unfortunately, two of them came saddled with boyfriends, but I'm sure he plans to work on that, he finished with an eloquent smile,"

Now Alice just looked bemused. " _Five_?"

"Yeah, five? I only counted four," Russell raised an inquisitive eyebrow.

Larry suddenly leant over, and Sarph decided this was the part where he left. Whenever Larry decided to get involved in a matter like this, it was a recipe for disaster. "Yeah. Tyria, Fleur, Grace, you, and Cubelios,"

"Pierce didn't bring me! If anyone brought me here, Tyria did," Alice glared at them.

"We're counting Cubelios? But she's an animal," Russell shook his head, ignoring the orangette.

"Wesley replied, that's what I thought too, but then Pierce decided to learn transformation magic, Wesley chuckled, shaking his head in mirth, and added, interesting coincidence, eh?"

Lync snatched Alice's wrist. "Come on, babe. They're just a bunch of perverted old men with no lives and too much time on their hands. Don't pay any attention to them,"

"You're right," Seemingly instantly swinging back to her normal cheerful self, Alice smiled and allowed Lync to lead her away. "There's just one thing I quickly want to do first,"

Larry chuckled as he watched them go. "The harem is totally on," he grinned.

"No way. Pierce is too pol -" Russell paused as the ground creaked underneath their seats. "What was that?"

Then the section of the floor supporting their bar stools gave way, sending the three men and their drinks plunging into the basement with screams. "Wesley screamed, aaaaaahhh!"

"Remind me not to get on your bad side," Lync raised his eyebrows, impressed, and Alice chuckled as the Amaterasu Seal disappeared from her hand. "I was going to let them off easy, but then they started dragging Grace into their perverted fantasies. Besides, there's only one boy whose harem I'd want to be in," she winked.

Lync blushed. "You're sweet,"

~P's E~

Later, Tyria chewed absently on a piece she'd bitten off an iron gear as she considered the day's events. Her taste for metal had not only lingered, but extended to the point where she would begin getting _hunger pangs_ if she didn't consume some kind of technology at least once a day. Luckily, she'd found a local scrapyard that didn't ask too many questions.

She knew she couldn't keep her new eating habits secret forever, but she didn't want to tell anyone. At least, not until she'd worked out why this was happening to her. The only thing she'd uncovered to date was that users of Dragon Slayer magic could eat their own element . . but she wasn't a Dragon Slayer. She'd know something like that, right? Plus, she wasn't exhibiting any of the other Dragon Slayer traits she'd become familiar with via Grace; enhanced senses, a tendency to sleep in loved ones' beds, an aptitude for destruction. It didn't add up; there was no reason for her to exhibit one Dragon Slayer trait, but not any others, right?

But no matter. She couldn't stop thinking about the fact that, when he'd gone a bit wild, Pierce had been affectionate with _her_. Even though Grace, the girl he saw as a sibling and who they all knew loved attention, was right next to her.

A possibility broached itself. "Does Pierce have feelings for me?" she wondered out loud. The thought prompted a reflection on her own relationship with Pierce that she'd never really considered before. "He is really nice and polite . . and I love how fierce and protective he is," she considered without even properly realising what she'd said, before deciding to try a different tack; what _didn't_ she like about him?

"Um . ." This one took some thought. His laid-back attitude was . . slightly irritating on the surface, but overall a very calming influence on her psyche. And . . um . .

"I'll think of something eventually," she finally sighed, deciding to reflect further in the morning. Pierce was a good friend, and he was close to her . . but she wasn't in love with him. That was just absurd.

~P's E~

In his apartment, Pierce groaned. "I can't believe I licked her face . . that's, like, an almost-kiss!"

"You're complaining about the fact that you got intimate with a girl you have the hots for," Kit irritably pointed out.

"Yeah, I mean, it was great . . but what if she didn't like it?" the Tamer questioned. "She didn't exactly embrace me back,"

"It's Tyria. She's used to having skin made of steel. That probably makes her sense of touch get all whacked up," the yokai reasoned.

"Yeah, maybe," Pierce sighed.

"Just don't worry about it. Tomorrow, go to the guild hall like normal and keep training with Elfman to get a handle on your new magic. Nothing's changed," Kit reasoned, before muttering, "though I wish it would,"

"I guess you're right," the blond admitted. "Goodnight, Kit,"

"Goodnight, Pierce,"

 _~P's E~_

 _"Alright!" Kit grinned, happy to be back on the air. "Welcome to the first DK's Ds segment in who knows how long? Lousy author," he snippily growled._

 _"Anyway. Right here, after a chapter full of emotional character development and right before we get stuck into a new story are, is where Fenghuang has decided it would be a good idea to throw in a segment discussing all the pairings that currently exist in the story!" he explained, gesturing at a blackboard with a pink loveheart on it._

 _"First up is the obvious one; Pierce and Tyria, or PieRia! Or TyrIerce . . whatever, I don't go in for ship names," Kit rolled his eyes. "This is the most obvious one, and the one that gets the most attention throughout the story. It's also somewhat one-sided, given that Pierce has been crushing on Tyria for months now and Tyria is only just getting into the swing of it. But I'm sure it'll be taking off soon,"_

 _"After that is the love triangle. On the one hand, Totomaru and Fleur are obviously into each other, but there's one big problem that's stopping them from getting together; Hare. She's obsessed with Totomaru and has a deep-set dislike of Fleur. While there's still several unanswered questions about Hare, that's not particularly relevant, so this is a quandary that has yet to be resolved. Poor Totomaru," he sighed. "But at any rate, things will get resolved eventually - most likely during Hare's upcoming story arc!"_

 _"Then there's Alice and Lync. The only couple who's actually gotten together, and have been so since they were introduced. But that's well-known and boring, so I won't discuss it for now," Kit shrugged. "That's all for today! See yas!"_

 _A/N_

 **A/N**

 **Oh yes the whole 'Pierce learning Take Over' thing is ironic . . if you've forgotten, Beast Tamer magic was originally going to be 'Spirit Charmer', a kind of magic that allowed the user to summon and merge with spirits like Kit in battle. So, in a way, this is just the actualisation of that original plan.**

 **Plus, you can never have enough PieRia fluff. ^^**

 **Speaking of which; I know the whole thing about 'sleeping in loved ones' beds' thing isn't necessarily canon, but it seems to be what happens. For more information I recommend checking out this link (and the associated story): s/10264509/133/Tales-of-Fairies**

 **Also, sorry that the last couple of chapters have been slow in terms of plot, but don't worry, the next story arc will begin next chapter. Consider yourselves all welcomed to Divine Caladrius.**

 **{chuckles darkly} Peace!**


	45. The Call of The Wild

Chapter 45: The Call of the Wild

It was late at night, in the early morning of January 14, X775, shone down on Magnolia, a dark cloud blotted out the waxing, almost-full moon, casting a shadow over the city.

A wind suddenly kicked up, gale forces blowing through Magnolia. Street signs creaked and swung, every cat in town yowled in unison and took cover, and an army of seemingly animated litter patrolled the streets.

In their respective guild halls, Makarov Dreyar and Feng Chriona warily watched from the windows of their quarters. "Something's coming. I can feel it," Feng muttered.

In Pierce's apartment, too, while the tenant and his adoptive sibling slumbered, Kit was awake and wary. "No one's getting to my wizards," he growled, casting around expectantly.

"I'm so glad we agree," The vulpine yokai jumped in surprise as Quarla emerged from the wall. He frowned. "How long have you been there?"

"Remember when Grace had that breakdown in Ghoulia? After her control lacrima were removed?" Quarla questioned, perching on a shelf and preening her feathers, doing her best to hide the fact that the magic permeating seemingly all of Magnolia had her just as concerned as Kit by putting on an air of impatient boredom. "You have me to thank for that mess not killing her,"

"Oh," Kit considered this. "I thought you didn't care?"

"About humans? I can't say that I do. But Grace is far more than a mere human, no matter the form she takes at present. She's interesting enough that she should be kept alive and well. So obviously I'm not going to allow anything to threaten her," the falcon yokai ascertained.

"I never get anything more than a headache out of our conversations, do I?" Kit lamented.

They stopped talking, sensing a presence outside the house, in the street, and approaching them. "Maybe it'll pass us by?" Kit hopefully questioned.

The presence they registered paused right outside. The two yokais exchanged a worried glance.

"No worries. It's probably going across the street," Kit waffled.

"This house is on a canal-side road. There _is_ no across the street!" Quarla hissed.

They both froze as a knocking sounded on the door downstairs.

"Well? Go open it!" Kit commanded.

"Why should I open it? You open it!" Quarla challenged in response.

Kit was about to respond, but paused. "Wait. We're intangible beings. Neither of us can open it,"

"Oh. You're right," the falcon replied, before looking down at Pierce. "I suppose we should wake him up?"

"Actually, I might have a better idea," At this, Kit shivered. "But I really don't like to do this,"

~P's E~

Lucy Heartfilia was very surprised to be woken up by a pair of yokais.

"This is your bright idea? A Celestial wizard?" Quarla irritatedly demanded.

"Oh, and you've got a better one? We need all the help we can get here!" Kit retorted.

"What exactly is going on?" Lucy asked, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes and looking around. In addition to the Dragon Slayer and his cat who, as usual, were sleeping in her bed instead of their own, there were a pair of yokais, one of which she vaguely recognised, hovering above her chest.

"There's someone dangerous knocking on Pierce's door, and we want you to take a look," Quarla bluntly explained.

"I thought you didn't like me?"

"Why do you think we're getting _you_ for this?" the falcon muttered, but Kit talked over her. "I like the idea of Pierce being in danger less. For all we know, he could open that door to a knife at his throat," he shrugged.

"But if I take a look from my house, we'll have the element of surprise," Lucy realised where this was going. "I get it," She yawned, sitting up and extricating herself from Natsu's clutches without disturbing him, before throwing on a cardigan and a pair of pants over her pyjamas and grabbing her Celestial Keys. "Alright. Let's go,"

The three paused outside the door, and Lucy tentatively unlocked it. She opened it a crack and peered out, Kit and Quarla following suit.

There was a short, stout figure wrapped in a black cloak knocking on Pierce's door. Although stout was a bad word . . it seemed proportionately wrong, as though it was not only short, but hunchbacked with an odd slant to their back. To add to this, the concealing fabric had fallen away around the being's hand, which it was using to knock, and revealing a somewhat gnarled, reddish claw.

"The hell is that?" Lucy squeaked.

At the noise, the being turned and looked in their direction, revealing red eyes that smouldered like coals with such brightness that everything around them looked duller by contrast. It lowered its foreleg, and started walking towards them. Lucy quailed and recoiled, shutting the door, and she, with the two yokais on either shoulder, shivered in fear.

There was a knocking on the door. Lucy was on the verge of bolting, when a voice echoed through the wood; young, boyish, lilting, with a faint Irish accent, and totally at odds with the situation. "Excuse me, miss? I don't suppose you know where I could find a Mr. Pierce Blastreyne, do you? I'd been told that he lives in that house next door, but no one's answering,"

The three exchanged confused glances. "Uh . ." Hesitantly, Lucy opened the door. The cloaked figure with its smouldering eyes was there, looking up at them. "Why do you want to find him?" Kit challenged.

The being blinked and tilted its head sideways inquisitively. "Yokais? I've never seen one of your lot up and about before, forget two," it admitted, before realising it had been asked a question. "Oh, um . . it's a bit of a long story, but to tell you the truth, I need his help,"

~P's E~

With this admission, Kit had decided there was little enough danger and enough reason that Pierce and Grace ought to be woken up. Therefore, it wasn't long until Pierce, Grace and Lucy were lounging together on the couch, with Kit on the armrest and Quarla having vanished somewhere again, while the stranger tried to make himself comfortable in Pierce's armchair.

"Alright, what's going on?" Pierce questioned. While he was inclined to extend trust to the stranger, having heard from Kit that he had been sought out in search of help, the stranger still wore its cloak and he didn't like secrets.

"It's a bit of a long story," the stranger repeated, before shaking itself and dislodging the cloak from its body, which fell to the ground. "But it starts with who and what I am," He, for the stranger was obviously a he, was a quadrupedal being, covered in crystal-looking red scales - wait, no. His scales actually were tiny rubies growing out of his flesh - with gnarled claws at the end of each limb. Stag-like antlers protruded from his head, smaller than might be expected, and a large black mane hung around his head and ran down his back, extending right along his curved, draconic tail and ending in a tuft. "My name is Cor, and, as you can see, I am a qilin,"

Pierce's eyes widened and he leant forwards. "A qilin? Oh gosh," He bowed his head respectfully. "I am honoured by your presence,"

"As am I," Lucy followed suit, and Grace looked between them in confusion. Kit also cast an odd glance at Pierce. "What are you two doing?" the dragon slayer questioned.

"Qilins are magical creatures that are functionally living embodiments of justice. They consider themselves above most mortals and usually only appear to the most wise and righteous of monarchs, for whom they are sometimes willing to act as impartial adjudicators. It's an honour just to be in the same room as one!" Pierce fervently whispered.

"You flatter me, but that's really not necessary. I came here asking for your help, after all," Cor bashfully replied as the two straightened their heads.

"And I'll be glad to provide it in any way I can," Pierce nodded, still somewhat in awe of the beast in his room.

The red qilin looked uncomfortable. "Have you ever heard of a human organisation known as 'Severed Tusk'?"

Pierce froze, his hands going limp. "How . . how do you know that name?"

"How about I start at the beginning?" Cor suggested.

~P's E~

"I live, with the rest of my kind, in our settlement near the peak of Mt Zheng. The inhospitable terrain usually makes it impossible for all but the most skilled and bravest humans to reach us,"

At the peak of the mountain was a plateau of lush greenery, at odds with the snow surrounding the area. In a clearing, surrounded by forest, was a simplistic settlement; the buildings were mostly wood, with rice paper walls. Because Mt Zheng was a dormant volcano, volcanic vents provided heat from the core of the earth that made the climate comfortable for beings to live there. Trees grew, crops could be planted, and live was peaceful and full of simple joys for the qilin population that lived there.

"My kind aren't the only ones that live up there, though. Our village is home to the shrine of the Caladrius, which is where our divine benefactor lives,"

On a tall hill overlooking the village was a massive white temple, made of polished and smoothed marble - and the visualisation froze as Grace interrupted. "What's a caladrius?"

"The Caladrius is our protector," Cor explained. "She's a divine immortal white bird, the demigod offspring of Lady Isis, goddess of nature,"

"Right," Grace nodded. "Continue,"

A massive, snow white bird that resembled a swan, with lines denoting closed eyes on her face, gazed down at the settlement with love and affection. And closed eyes. Somehow.

"She watches over us, cares for us. Even though she's only partially divine, to us she's a goddess,"

Back down in the settlement, in a large building with rice paper walls, several young qilins, including Cor, were presided over by an older qilin with sapphire scales and a bright yellow mane.

"Qilins have the power to see into people's hearts. To understand what drives them, their goals, their dreams, and their fears. All qilins have an innate sense of justice that we refuse to defy, and we're capable of understanding and accurately judging the worth of a person's decisions. Some of us are trained to use this power, so that we can act in the role of high adjudicators when we're called on. I was one of these trainees,"

The screen froze again. "Wait, have you looked into our hearts like that, then?" Lucy blinked.

"Of course," Cor admitted, unbothered by the idea that this might be a betrayal of privacy. "And if I'd seen something bad, I would have left and sought aid elsewhere. But while all of your hearts are flawed, they are still good,"

"Flawed?" Grace blinked with a scandalised look.

"Yes. You, for example," the qilins indicated Lucy, "are strong-willed, loyal and friendly, but your greed holds you back -"

"I am not greedy!" Lucy furiously protested.

"- as does your lack of anger management skills," Cor patiently finished, to chuckles from the rest of the room, before eyeing Grace. "You, though, are the opposite. Your lack of interest towards material possessions is commendable, as is your desire to get better. Interesting specification, I must admit; you don't want to get stronger, but _better_. I respect that. However, you are easily cowed and afraid of . . yourself?" At this, the qilin blinked, confused.

"Ah, anyway. As for you," he gestured to Pierce, but the Tamer interrupted. "Later. Finish your story, there'll be plenty of time for you to tell me about my heart on the journey,"

Cor nodded, seeing the sense. "That's actually one of the best things about your heart; your willingness to put others before yourself," he commented, but nodded. "But alright,"

~P's E (full flashback mode now, no more interruptions)~

It was a normal day in Qilin Village, when they came.

The villagers, making up a crystalline rainbow with their multicoloured scales, all gathered in the town square and watched as what looked like a flying sledge made out of black metal, with a green magic circle supporting it and three humans riding on board. The vehicle touched down in the centre of the square, and the tallest of the group smiled. He was a man with well-defined, tanned muscles, and a large, black coat slung over his shoulder, with a similarly coloured helmet crowning his head, which had leather goggles strapped to it, and dreadlocks of blonde hair hanging out. A tan-coloured belt was strapped around his waist, with several pockets cut into it, and a large rifle was slung over his back, with the butt protruding above his left shoulder. Finally, a guild mark; a curved elephant tusk that had been snapped in two, and the pieces falling apart, was printed in black on his cheek.

The elder of the village was a positively ancient qilin, twice the size of most of those around him, with white diamond scales and purple fur coating his neck and running down his body, and a huge, majestic spread of antlers with a dozen points crowning his head. His name was Zenophus, and he had been village elder for nigh a hundred years. "Greetings, humans. What brings you to our village?"

The man bowed his head respectfully to the beast in front of him. "It is an honour to make your acquaintance, mighty qilin. My name is Jarod Blastreyne, and I come in search of the Divine Caladrius. Though, to find such rare and impressive beasts as you and your kin here with her, it makes me happy. And may I just say how much I admire your pelt? We humans could hardly dream to have coats made of such rich material,"

"My thanks for the compliment," Zenophus nodded graciously, before adopting a wary countenance. "You seek our benefactor? For what purpose?"

"It is true that she is capable of healing any illness, no matter how dire, yes?"

"Indeed,"

"Then I have been sent on behalf of one who needs her services. My client's daughter is very sick, and only the powers of your benefactor can heal her,"

"That should not be a problem," the elderly qilin agreed. "Bring the girl here and the Caladrius will heal her,"

"Actually, I was rather hoping the Caladrius would return with me and my companions to her bedside," Jarod tested the waters. "I fear that she will not survive being moved,"

"You will have to take the chance. The Caladrius cannot leave this mountain," the elder apologetically replied.

"Really? Well, that's unfortunate," Jarod frowned. "Though, I suppose there's one thing you should be aware of,"

"And what might that be?" Zenophus asked.

"I've never cared much for other people's rules," Jarod said the words so mildly that it took the elder a moment to grasp their meaning. "You know, that really is a very nice pelt. I hope that the blood won't stain it too much, otherwise I might have trouble finding someone to buy it,"

And with that, he whipped out his gun in an instant and shot Zenophus in the throat. The elder collapsed, instinctively clutching at his throat with his forelegs, even though he knew it was a fatal wound.

"Bring in the cavalry. Bag 'em and tag'em!" Jarod's cold tones cut through the commotion that this had caused, now that he had abandoned all pretence of niceties, and his two lackeys grinned at each other, before one of them produced a flare gun and shot it into the sky.

All eyes watched the projectile as it soared upwards, before exploding in a flare of orange light. And the signal, for it was obviously that, was heeded, and a score of tiny flying vehicles like the one Jarod had arrived on suddenly shot up to the peak from the lower reaches of the mountains.

There was panic, as the qilins scattered. One of Jarod's assistants slammed a palm into his fist and cried, "Metalmake: Cage!" A metal cage erupted from the ground, trapping a trio of nearby qilins.

"Good work, Motormouth," Jarod commended his black-haired teammate with his wispy beard and khaki suit, before turning to the other lackey. "Kroeber? Lead the men and start setting traps,"

"Yes, sir!" Kroeber, the pudgy man with his dark, stained overalls and bald head, saluted.

Meanwhile, in the crowd, Cor looked around. "What are you all doing?" he demanded. "Fight back!"

But no one heeded his words, and the crowd rapidly dispersed. "Ugh, it's useless," Cor realised, watching his kin scatter. A thought came to him. "Maybe we can't fight these guys, but there's gotta be someone who can. And I know just how to find out who," Focusing on Jarod as he directed his men, the ruby qilin forced himself to peer into the man's heart. It was an ugly thing, sickly and grotesque, but he swallowed his revulsion and searched. "Come on. Fears, weaknesses. Give me something I can use to defeat you! What are you afraid of, who are your enemies?"

At this, his searching through Jarod's heart uncovered something. A young face, framed in blond hair, carrying a flute and riding a phoenix. It only took a few seconds more to put a name to the face. _Pierce Blastreyne_. "Whoever this guy is, I need to find him," Cor resolved, and, just like that, Jarod's heart gave him an address. "The city of Magnolia, on the eastern coast. That's where I'm going,"

However, Jarod noticed the adolescent qilin staring at him. "Oh, an easy target," he raised his eyebrows in surprise, and smiled. "And I thought I wouldn't get to have any of the fun today," he muttered, before adjusting the setting on his gun and firing at Cor.

The reinforced, armour-piercing tranquilliser bullet pierced his scales, and, still scouring the enemy's heart for anything that might help, Cor didn't realise he was being attacked until it was too late. As the tranquilliser entered his system, his vision blurred and faded, until he collapsed.

"Why are you doing this?" Jarod turned in faint surprise to see Zenophus, clinging to life despite his injury, staring up at him in consternation. "Why?"

"Because it amuses me to mix business with pleasure," Jarod replied in an impious tone.

"Is that really it?" Zenophus questioned in disbelief.

"Look into my heart. Find out," the hunter challenged, and Zenophus obliged, squinting at Jarod to read his heart.

After a moment, the qilin gasped, before breaking off into a throaty wheeze as blood spurted from his wound. "My god . . you really are . . doing this . . for sport," Unable to speak anymore, the elder collapsed, feeling his life drain away.

"It isn't just sport, though that does play a role," Jarod admitted, unbothered by the fact that he was having a conversation with a half-dead person. "The amount of money I stand to make here is unprecedented, not to mention the power I will gain by subjecting a demigod to my will. And with that, I'll be able to propel Severed Tusk to new heights! Perhaps, even, net my guild a place among Tartaros, Grimoire Heart and Kairos End as a power player in the Balam Alliance," he cackled to himself. "And _then_ , no beast the world over will be safe from my gun!"

~P's E~

Throughout the settlement, chaos reigned as dark wizards of Severed Tusk hunted down fleeing qilins, capturing them with various magical traps. This was the scene that Cor woke to; being dragged by the tail by a skinny man who was grunting from the exertion towards a cage. "You're a heavy blighter, eh?" he muttered.

Considering the day he had been having, Cor decided a certain amount of satisfaction in wrapping his tail around the man's wrist and flicking it to pull him to the ground, before kicking him in the face, was entirely justifiable. He refrained from stepping on the man's head as he rose to his feet, though; that was unjustifiably vindictive.

He looked around - and it was bad. Dozens of wagons had been driven into town, and parked all around the main entrance; while a few were residential, a couple more were storage vehicles, and a few had purposes he could only guess at, the majority were piled high with cages, many of which contained his neighbours and friends.

And his rebellion hadn't gone unnoticed. "Oi! One o' em's getting loose!" a hunter shouted, pointing at Cor, who quailed, before wheeling and bolting.

Qilins were faster than humans, there was no doubt about that. The only reason anyone had been captured was because, in the panic, none of them were thinking rationally, and the hunters were extremely skilled at tricking them into running into traps. Cor used his speed to his advantage, racing through the town - until a trio of men rounded a corner and blocked his way down the street, steadily advancing towards him. He balked, searching for another avenue of escape - until he spotted that one of their feet passed straight _through_ a discarded piece of debris.

Frowning, he tried seeing into their hearts, just a glimpse - and found nothing. It was then that Cor realised he had been duped. His attackers were illusions!

Behind him, a roar sounded, and he glanced behind him to spot another couple of men approaching him, and they definitely weren't false. So, without a second thought, he lowered his head, baring his premature antlers, and charged, passing straight through the illusions and emerging into open street. Apparently, the hunters hadn't counted on him working out how to determine real enemies from false ones, and he wasn't bothered again as he left the suburbs and entered the farm district. Immediately, Cor veered right and tore into a wheat field, so that the high, yellow stalks would conceal him from view. His camoflauge worked, and he was unbothered as he left the cornfield and escaped into the woods surrounding the settlement.

"I've gotta find this Pierce fellow," Cor resolved, making a quick to-do list, even as he left the forest and emerged into the icy tundra that would be his companion for most of the way down the mountain. "Alright; get down the mountain, get directions to Magnolia, get to Magnolia, find Pierce and ask for his help," With his priorities set, Cor raced onwards, carving a furrow in the snow.

~P's E~

"That was yesterday," Cor finished, before glancing at Pierce's clock and realising that it was one am. "Ah, day before yesterday,"

Pierce gritted his teeth, clenching his fists. "That bastard . . how dare he?"

"So, ahem, if you don't mind me asking . . who are you, exactly? I'm guessing from the shared surname that you're an estranged relative of some sort, but that doesn't tell me much," Cor inquisitively prodded.

"I'm a Beast Tamer wizard of the Phoenix's Eye guild, who hates my father and everything he stands for," Pierce growled.

"So, you'll help us?" Cor hopefully asked.

"Of course . . but we all need to get some sleep first. Especially you, if you've been running for thirty hours straight," Mt. Zheng was a long way to the north-west from Magnolia. Qilins were fast, but making the journey on foot in a day and a half was a stretch, even for them. "In the morning, we'll round up the gang, get Master Feng to let us take the Garuda and make way for the mountain. We should be there by morning day after tomorrow,"

"Good," Cor sagged with relief. "The shrine should hold out that long,"

"Shrine?" Pierce repeated with a frown.

"The Divine Caladrius' shrine is the most defensible position on the mountain. The Caladrius and anyone who made it there before the magic barriers went up will be holed up there. I've no doubt that the hunters will be laying siege to them," Cor explained.

"Right, that's good. Okay, Grace, Kit, Cor, get some rest. It looks like we're off on another adventure,"

Lucy blinked, looking at him. "What about me?"

"Sorry, but this is my father, and my fight, and that makes it a Phoenix's Eye matter," Pierce shook his head.

The Celestial wizard accepted the logic, but didn't look too happy about it. "Fine. I just wanted to see the village of qilins,"

"There's that greed again, holding you back," Cor sagely pointed out, and Lucy fumed. "Shut it,"

~P's E~

"Maybe I should just declare you lot official owners of the Garuda," Feng mused when Pierce and Grace, with Cor in tow, explained the situation to her. "It seems like you're the only ones who ever use it,"

"That's not true," Pierce shook his head, but paused. "Is it?"

It didn't take long for Tyria, Boomer and Sarph to join them where they were meeting on the upper floor of the guild hall, near the S-Class board. "It's an honour to be in your presence," Tyria and Sarph dutifully bowed their heads to the qilin, who looked rather flattered, and Boomer looked at his teammates in surprise, before eyeing Cor with new eyes, "Um . . what they said?"

"I suppose Hare doesn't want to come on our next adventure?" Pierce rolled his eyes. There was already an unspoken agreement that this was going to precipitate a new journey for their little group. After Ghoulia and Electria, it was practically the done thing.

"Yeah, hut I don't think we should force her this time," Sarph admitted. "She took one look at that qilin - it is an honour to be in your presence - and bolted. It was almost as though she was scared," he mused thoughtfully.

"Hare . . was she that ugly woman in green with the Speed magic?" Cor asked thoughtfully, shivering a little.

"That's her," Tyria confirmed, chuckling.

"I'm glad she's not coming," the qilin shivered. "I took a cursory glance at everyone in this guilds' hearts when I entered . . her heart was the most sour, shrivelled little thing I've ever laid eyes on, like a pickled plum that's been left out for too long. It made me feel sick,"

The wizards exchanged glances. "That's Hare alright," Boomer nodded.

"Indeed," Feng nodded with a wry smile.

"Maybe Lync can come instead?" Tyria suggested, but paused. "Wait, no. He left on a job yesterday and hasn't gotten back yet," she recalled.

Soft footsteps interrupted their conversation, and the group turned to see Eve, her soft, grey eyes, framed as they were by brown hair, glistening with moisture as she approached, her Celestial Keyring being nervously fiddled with as she moved. "I . . I couldn't help overhearing . . sorry . . . I want to come with you,"

Pierce raised his eyebrows. "Why?"

"I . . . . have a vested interest in keeping qilins safe," she muttered, and her blue frock shook around her as she shivered. "Uh, it's an honour,"

Cor narrowed his eyes at her, preparing to give her heart a full, in-depth reading - and was amazed by what he immediately saw. "I see," he muttered, a slightly amused smile breaking out on his face. "She should come," the qilin recommended to Pierce, who shrugged. "Alright,"

Soon, the group was on the Garuda, and Kit was lifting off. "This is your mission, you should take charge," Tyria commented to Pierce, who nodded.

The Tamer paused, and blinked. "Hey, wait. I always take charge," he pointed out, and Tyria realised he was right. "Well, uh . ."

"You should take double charge," Grace suggested.

"Yes," Pierce nodded with a chuckle, before raising his voice. "Hear that, everyone? I am in double charge!"

"Not of me, you aren't!" Sarph responded from across the deck. "I only let people be in single charge of me!"

As they flew, Cor couldn't get enough of the view. "This is incredible . . I mean, the view from the mountaintop is good, but this is just incredible," he commented, tail twitching in excitement.

Tyria joined him, her natural thirst for knowledge overcoming her reverence. "You get used to it," she conversationally admitted. "Kinda comes with the territory of being part of Pierce's team,"

"So, you're all in an official team?" Cor questioned, and the Electrian shrugged. "Well, not as such . . it's more that we're all pretty close, and if any of us need help then we ask each other first. It's a group policy that's resulted in the lot of us often ending up together for the wildest adventures,"

Cor nodded, accepting this. "It sounds nice," A thought struck him. "What's it like, being in a guild?"

Tyria chuckled. "It's brilliant. Everyone's there for each other, no one judges you for anything. And I should know,"

"Yeah, I can tell," he nodded, before taking a quick look at Tyria's heart, noticing that she sounded wistful and deciding some reassurance over deep-seated concernswould be in order. "But you shouldn't get too concerned," Cor pointed out. "As far as the Magic Council's concerned, the Shellshocker's dead, and the Electrian Compendium's in a pretty safe location. Plus I don't think Alvarez has any idea where you, Lync and Alice are," He wasn't really sure what to say about her metallic eating habits, so he decided not to bring it up.

At this, Tyria spluttered in shock and almost fell off the railing. "How do you - oh. Right. Reading people's hearts. Do you have no concept of privacy?" she demanded.

Cor raised the scaly ridges that functioned as eyebrows for him, having not expected the dramatic reaction. "Eh . . privacy. That means . . eh . ."

"Oh wow . . you honestly don't know what privacy is," Tyria gasped.

Pierce joined them. "Consider it this way, Tyria. Skilled qilins have the power to find out anything they want to know about a person just by looking at them, and Cor was in training to work as a professional arbiter, so of course he's good at it. In a society where everyone has that power, it's all but impossible to keep secrets. It's natural that he isn't used to thinking in terms of 'private information',"

"Sorry," Cor shrugged helplessly.

"Well, he needs to learn," Tyria sulked, before turning back to the qilin. "Don't tell anyone about either of those things, okay?"

"Right," he nodded.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **Here comes that movie scene, the one you think's so cliché! That moment when they . . . oh, sorry, wrong lines. I meant; Here comes Divine Caladrius! I think this is a pretty good concept, if I do say so myself. Obviously Pierce and Jarod could only come to blows over the survival of a species of magical creature. XD Anyway. I'm hoping that this story arc will last until sometime around Chapter 52 or 53. The next themes will be Chapters 55/56, and then we'll get into S-Class trials.**

 **Oh, and,** ** _wow_** **. When I started this story all those months ago, I honestly thought that Pierce being Lucy's next-door neighbour would be a recurring plot element, but other than that time when Team Natsu and Team Pierce (pre-little girl dragons) met outside their houses, this is the first time it's really come up. I guess it just goes to show; who needs canon characters? (Except Totomaru because you can never have enough Totomaru!) XD**

 **Also, time again to remind everyone about the Chapter 50 Q/A session! Peace!**


	46. The Tears We've Shed

Chapter 46: The Tears We've Shed

Inside his caravan, which had, along with the rest of the train of various caravans and wagons that Severed Tusk used as a cheap imitation of a mobile base, been dragged up the mountain and set up in and around the village, Jarod Blastreyne lounged in his armchair as he contacted a meeting with his most trusted guildmates.

There was Kroeber, the pudgy, bald man in brown overalls, with close-set, squinting eyes. He was a master trapper, capable of rigging machines to imprison any animal.

The second face at the table belonged to Motormouth, a man with a pinched, triangular face and several spikes of black hair, with a thick monobrow, a harsh line of a mouth and wide, staring eyes, in his black shirt and blue trousers. Motormouth was a Metal Maker mage and a skilled craftsman, who provided all of the materials the guild used; cages, guns, patches, anything.

The sole women at the table was Juniper, a sultry woman with a rounded, chalky white face and glistening blue eyes, and pale orange hair tied in pigtails. Her mouth was set in what seemed to be a permanent gothic smirk, and her body was coated in fishnets that left plenty of skin bare, with black lace covering her sensitive areas. A gifted illusionist, Juniper excelled at trickery and falsehoods and could usually bait any animal into doing whatever she wanted with her magic

Finally, the last person at the table looked extraordinarily out of place; a large, man-like creature whose body was covered in scales of pale green, with sickly yellow on his chest and the undersides of his arms. A long, serpentine tail lashed at the air behind him, and his head was flattened and twitched forwards in a serpentine manner. A faded pattern of brown blotches frantically down his back, and occasionally his tongue lashed out to taste the air. He was completely naked, save for a pair of tinted, specially designed shades that covered his eyes. This was Syrus, the most skilled tracker in Severed Tusk, and a master of camoflauge and avoiding detection. No beast even knew he was there until he was making the kill.

Syrus tracked the beast they were hunting. Motormouth made the traps, and Kroeber set them. Juniper lured the beast in, and Jarod made the kill.

Alone, each of the five were skilled hunters. Together? No beast was safe from their clutches.

"Good work, everyone," Jarod commended his team. They weren't the only members of Severed Tusk, but they were his hand-picked best. The rest were just grunts. "I take it all the qilins are accounted for?"

"It's hard to say, considering we don't know how many there were to begin with," Kroeber pointed out, arms folded.

Jarod considered the point. "Well, how many did we capture? Motormouth?"

Kroeber and Juniper groaned quietly, and Syrus hissed in irritation. Inviting Motormouth to speak was never a good idea.

"Well it's a funny story but at first we actually ran out of cages and that's pretty impressive considering we brought a hundred cages all large enough to fit at least four qilins in them but we still filled them all up and the boys just kept bringing in more and more qilins so I had to whip up some new ones like stat but I did because I'm a Metal Maker Mage and that's what Metal Maker Mages like me are good at so I was making more cages and the boys were bringing in more qilins and they just kept filling up and we actually started running out of places to store the cages so we had to start piling them on top of each other and I'm sorry about that Master because I know you don't like it when we do that so I'm sorry I had to do that but anyway they kept coming and I kept making more cages and then people started complaining that they didn't have anywhere to set up their caravans so I told them that I was busy and they should ask Kroeber but they said they couldn't find Kroeber so I said ask you Master and they said that you were busy and had already asked them to go away so I kind of blew them off and demanded that they leave me in peace because we still had a dozen captives coming in every minute and I needed to make more cages because I'm the only Metal Maker wizard in the guild and I just know that there was no one else who could possibly made cages so I snapped at them that they should just pile their caravans on top of each other like I was doing with the cages again so sorry about that Master I really didn't have a choice and would you believe it they listened to me started getting those little hover things what were they called again oh yeah ornigliders and using three or four of them apiece to lift their caravans up and stack them on top of one another and then they started smashing up the buildings so that they could make scaffolding to hold the stacked caravans together and allow them to get into them and stuff which was really quite clever of them I have to admit that it kind of made me proud I would have offered to help but like I said before I was still busy with making cages and so as more and more qilins came in I just had to -"

By now Jarod had grown fed up with Motormouth's waffling. "The number, Motormouth! Out with it!"

"Oh, uh, right. Eight hundred and sixty four, Master," Motormouth finally reported.

"Well, that's not so bad then, considering a few more are still holed up with the Caladrius in that goddamn shrine," Jarod observed. "I trust they're all securely contained?"

"Saw to it personally, sir," Kroeber saluted. "Though a lot of the little blighters was looking at me funny. Had to resist the urge to clamp something sharp 'round a few of their necks,"

"Restrain yourself, old friend," Jarod commanded in a tone that disallowed disobedience. "After all, we'll hardly be able to set up a breeding farm with a herd of dead monsters, will we?"

Syrus raised a scaly claw. "You're sssure I can't eat a couple?" he hissed, forked tongue playing around his lips.

"Only the ones that try to escape," Jarod shook his head. Allowing Syrus to eat any qilins that attempted a prison break would serve two purposes; it would weed out the strong-willed amongst the prisoners, which was good because when they instigated the breeding program, they wanted weak-minded creatures with broken spirits to pass down their lily livers to their offspring and decrease the odds of future rebellion, and watching their brethren be disposed of in such a brutal way would go all the further towards breaking the rest's spirits.

"Asss you wisss, Massster," Syrus, who knew the drill, agreed.

"Juniper. How goes attempting to lure the Caladrius out of the shrine?" Jarod asked.

Juniper tched irritatedly. "Not well, sir. It's like she can see straight through my illusions," she fumed.

"Unsurprising. The Caladrius is the semi-divine offspring of a goddess. It stands to reason that she would have stronger magic than all but the mightiest mere mortals," Jarod ascertained. "But that magic will be mine. Keep trying to pier -" He broke off his sentence for a second at the word as thoughts of his estranged son filled his mind. " _Penetrate_ ," he corrected, "their defences,"

"Your wish is my command, master," The silky, seductive purr in Juniper's voice told him that at that moment, she wasn't calling him that in the context of him being master of her guild, but meant something far more sultry. He brushed it off, that was Juniper for you. Most everyone in the guild knew all about her 'habits', and plenty had gotten a share of their benefits.

"Excellent," Jarod smiled, baring yellowing teeth. "Well, everyone. I think that's enough business for tonight. Now, I could kill for a cup of tea,"

"Rightly so, sir. I always find that improves the taste," Kroeber offered, and Jarod chuckled. "Indeed it does, old friend,"

~P's E~

When Pierce had been practicing his Take Over magic, he had run into problems with a couple of his beasts.

Brakodidon was a major issue, and Pierce had basically determined that it was easier to just not use him; the Take Over: Cerberus had no particular benefits over Take Over: Werewolf, except for gaining two additional heads . . an experience that had been so confusing and disconcerting when he first tried it, that Pierce had resolved not to repeat the process without good reason.

He was equally reluctant to even try a Take Over on Cubelios, for two reasons; because he still didn't have an effective way to communicate with her, he didn't know if she would be alright with it, and refused on principle to force her into it. And, even disregarding that, Sarph had testified to the myriad of enchantments that had been placed on her, any or all of which could throw his own magic out of joint. The S-Class wizard had admitted that he was surprised that Beast Tamer Magic worked on her without any issues.

Other than that, Pierce's Take Over had been working well with all of his beasts - the experience of transformation was strange, but he was adjusting to it.

And, he had to admit, the experiences had encouraged him to more actively focus on taming more beasts and gaining more transformations. He hadn't given it any thought before, but now that he was on the same airship as a qilin, Pierce found himself wondering what it might be like to perform a Take Over with one of them.

Obviously he wouldn't be pushy in regard to the subject, though; qilins were majestic beings, and he would be honoured if one of them wished to stay with him. That would only be tainted if he tried to force one to join him. But he couldn't help feeling curious.

The Garuda creaked around him, startling the Tamer out of his reverie. He looked around in mild panic, before realising there was no imminent threat and settling back down on the bench above decks that encircled the main furnace.

The airship was up in the mountains now, and it was the middle of the night. Because the wind had been with them, they had made good time and were scheduled to arrive at Qilin Village smoothly after midnight. Pierce had volunteered to take watch while everyone else slept.

"You're very respectful. I approve of that," a familiar voice came from the other side of the central furnace, set right beneath the tiller on the main deck. Cor shuffled into view, his ruby scales glistening in the light from the furnace. "It's honestly hard to believe you and that horrid Jarod man are related,"

"I suppose the 'nice' gene skipped a generation," Pierce wryly commented.

"Evidently," Cor nodded, settling back down. "Mind calling out your phoenix friend? This furnace ain't hot enough,"

"Sure," the Tamer easily agreed, Requipping his flute and playing Raya's fast-paced, fiery tune. Sure enough, his oldest friend appeared, crouched over them. "Brr, it's cold," Raya muttered through a shivering beak, crouching near the furnace. Cor squinted at her, and Pierce guessed that he was reading her heart.

"On second thought, this was a bad idea. She obviously can't take this weather, send her back," Cor decided. Pierce raised an eyebrow, slightly irritated about himself and his beasts being ordered around like this, but Raya nodded, and he agreed, recalling her.

"That's a nifty trick you have with that flute," Cor observed. "Is it permanent?"

"No. I can break the connection with any of my beasts any time they want to leave. So far, though, none of them have," Pierce explained, before realising where this was going. "You were reading my heart when I was thinking about the possibility of taming a qilin, weren't you? And now you're trying to decide if you want to go through with it," he asked.

"Am I that obvious?" Cor blinked, but nodded. "Fine, you caught me. I'm not completely decided yet, though. Let me think it over,"

"Take all the time you need. I don't want to tame a beast who feels like they've been pressured into joining me," Pierce agreed. "In the meantime, you should get to bed, there's no reason for you to be out here,"

"Yeah there is. I gots to see what the hunters have done to my home," Cor pointed out, inching closer to his companion for warmth.

The blond considered this. "Fair enough,"

"You should be in bed yourself. I can keep watch," Cor offered, but Pierce shook his head. "Naah. I said I would, so I will. Besides, I can't leave you up here alone,"

With that, the two lay together for a while as Kit forced the Garuda onwards through the cold night.

It was just after midnight when Garuda set down on a relatively flat section of tundra. "We're here," Kit reported, and Pierce started. "What? No we aren't,"

"Aye. The village is up there!" Cor agreed, pointing at the mountain to their left.

"We can't fly up there. The hunters will see us and shoot us down," His incorporeal body unaffected by the cold, Kit manifested on deck nearby and gestured at the airship's massive red/white canopy. "We aren't exactly inconspicuous,"

"Maybe in a snowstorm," Pierce mused. "But we can't exactly wait for one of those,"

"Yeah. Me and Sarph talked already, we'll have to go on foot from here," the yokai clarified. "I'll wake the others, you two keep watch," With that, he phased through the floor.

"How does he do that?" Cor asked, tilting his head thoughtfully.

"It's better not to ask," Pierce shrugged.

It wasn't long before everyone was awake and gathered on deck. "You said it was warmer in the village, right? Volcanic vents or something?"

"Yeah. The mountain's actually a dormant volcano, and heat rises up through the core of the mountain and keeps the peak area warm," Cor reiterated.

"Well, in that case, why don't we just find one of these volcanic tunnels and use that to get up the mountain?" Boomer suggested. "It would be warmer, and no one could see us coming,"

"No go," Sarph shook his head. "The heat would be too intense. We might not be able to breathe,"

"Yeah. Plus, it sounds like the shafts mostly go straight upwards. It's all good and well for me, Sarph and Grace, but Eve and Boomer - and Cor, for that matter - can't fly, and there might not be enough room for Pierce's flying beasts to spread their wings," Tyria pointed out. "And that's assuming we could find an opening nearby,"

Pierce suddenly noticed that, though Eve had joined the group, she hadn't contributed, and didn't seem bothered by the cold. "Eve? Are you alright?"

"Huh? Oh, I'm fine," Eve reassured him. "I just don't have anything to add - and the cold doesn't bother me, really!"

"Well, we ought to be going," Sarph ascertained. "Come on!"

And so the group began the hike up the mountain. Tyria was tempted to take off, but Sarph pointed out that the noise might alert someone, and that she really should save her magic energy for the inevitable fighting. So they were all forced to make their way up the mountain without the aid of magic. Luckily, if wasn't too steep, and Cor, being a local, could pick the safest and easiest routes for them to take.

It was two o'clock in the morning when the arrived at the hotspot up top. Boomer gasped, and everyone was awed to see the way that snow suddenly turned to forest, and the instant increase in temperature they experienced when they crossed the threshold. "Wow. I was wondering how anything could possibly live up here . . is this place magical?" Pierce questioned, amazed.

"Nope. Totally natural. Mind your footing, though, everyone. This place is pockmarked with volcanic vents, and you wouldn't want to put your foot in one," Sarph explained, cautioning everyone. Eve shivered. With her Snow magic, that would end particularly badly for her.

"Shouldn't we make for the shrine, if the remainder of your people are holed up there?" Boomer questioned, and Cor shook his head. "No, they'll mistake us for hunters and think that I'm being coerced. We can't count on their aid,"

"Our priority should be freeing the qilins," Pierce reasoned, but Tyria shook her head. "No, our priority has to be taking out the hunters. They might just recapture the qilins if we don't deal with them,"

"You're all right," Sarph stilled the argument. "These are all things that need to be done, and they need to be done fast. The Caladrius needs to be aware of our presence, the captives need to be freed, and the hunters dealt with. We need to split up,"

"He's right," Pierce nodded. "Tyria, you and Boomer go deal with the hunters. Me and Sarph will free the captives, and -"

"No. The Caladrius needs to meet with the group's leader. That's you," Cor shook his head. "Eve should come to see her too,"

Pierce nodded, deciding this was logical enough and trying not to get too excited at the prospect of meeting the legendary Divine Caladrius. "Alright. Me and Eve go meet the defenders, and Sarph and Grace free the captives,"

"Uh," Pierce raised his eyebrows, looking at Grace, who suddenly looked nervous. "Is something wrong?" he gently asked.

"Well, it's just . . last time me and Sarph worked together, it didn't go well," Grace pointed out. "And I'd kind of like to win a fight without it ending with me being unconscious,"

The Tamer briefly thought back to the disaster that had happened to Grace in Ghoulia. "Alright. Sarph, you help Tyria with the hunters, and Boomer, you and Grace free the qilins. Good?"

"Sure," Boomer nodded, and Grace grinned and nodded.

"Right then. Let's go!" Pierce declared, looking to Cor, who promptly began leading him and Eve in a roundabout direction that would take them through the woods to approach from the shrine. Meanwhile, the rest of the team made for the distant lights of the town.

~P's E~

It was around now that Syrus twitched as something unfamiliar entered the air. He tasted it, flicking his tongue around and registering a foreign presence. Distant, but drawing near. "Massster?" he hissed, but Jarod had retired into his private quarters around midnight. Motormouth had also vanished somewhere, probably exhausted, and Kroeber and Juniper had gone off to do . . . things.

"I sssuppossse it'sss up to me to sssort this out," he decided, rising from the table and removing himself from the caravan.

The claws on his feet clicked against the stones underfoot as he stepped outside. The unfamiliar scent was coming from the forest to the east, and the shrine was to the north . . "Maybe a beassst essscaped, and called for help," he mused, moving in a north-east direction. That way, if the reinforcements were making for the shrine - which they logically would - it should be possible for him to intercept them.

The possibility that whatever he came across might be too much for him to defeat didn't even occur to Syrus. He was a hunter, one of the best. When he went into battle, he didn't think of himself and his opponent as adversaries. He thought in terms of predator and prey.

~P's E~

Cor stealthily led Pierce and Eve through the forest. Pierce followed, equally stealthily.

Eve, though, blundered through the forest, snapping twigs underfoot and shrieking at every little noise, and Pierce rapidly learnt to clap his hand over her mouth every time she opened it.

"S-sorry," she stammered after making a particularly loud noise.

"Don't worry, it's alright," Pierce reassured her, but his weary tone implied that he didn't really feel that way.

"We've gotta go faster. It'll be daylight soon," Cor hissed from somewhere ahead of them. Nodding, Pierce ushered Eve forwards.

Not far away, Syrus snuck through the forest, quietly reflecting to himself that whoever was here, they obviously didn't know anything about stealth. He didn't even need the blatantly obvious trail they were leaving to detect their presence; the sheer amount of noise they were making was ridiculous. If not for the regular 'sssh' noises he was hearing, he would have feared that they were trying to draw him in and lead him into an ambush.

As it was, it didn't take long at all before he spotted an out-of-place flash of yellow. It was the petticoat Eve had put on over her blue frock to keep out the colt,and it was easy to spot against the greens and browns of the forest. "Guildersss. Bingo," he hissed, and an emerald green magic circle appeared in his hand. "Paralysssisss Venom," he hissed, before miming throwing something as though he were carrying an atlatl, and a dart shot through the air with impeccable aim.

Eve gasped and lurched forwards as the projectile hit her in the back, immediately penetrating her clothing and biting into her skin. She tottered forwards and collapsed as her entire body from her chest down went limp.

Pierce started, before ducking away and taking cover behind a tree. "We're under fire, hide!" he called to Cor, who nodded and, with an agile leap, jumped into the canopy of a nearby tree and hid there.

Carefully, Pierce risked a glance, and immediately spotted the serpent-like hunter creeping through the bushes towards them. "We've been spotted. Shit,"

Syrus paused, standing near where Eve had fallen to the ground. He wanted to bend down to pick the girl up and get answers out of her, but knew that doing so would leave him exposed, if only for a second.

'A snake man,' Pierce thought. 'Jeez, not another snake. If this guy also has a Dragon Lacrima inside him, I might have to start looking into getting one myself. Because the universe seems to love throwing them at me,' he reflected.

Syrus put his back to a nearby tree, using it as cover in case of an attack, and crept backwards around it, wary that he might be surprised from behind while using his peripheral vision to see the direction in front of him. Meanwhile, Pierce, knowing that the attack had come from his left, kept his eyes in that direction as he crept to his right, using the tree at his back as cover and hoping to surprise his opponent with an attack from an unexpected direction.

The two bumped into one another.

Syrus was startled, but not enough that it stopped him from whirling on his heels and preparing an attack. Pierce, though, already had his flute in hand and whirled away, frantically playing a tune on his flute as he did.

Syrus' attack was thwarted by a black tentacle wrapping around his arm as Inky appeared, the young black kraken immediately lashing out. "Inky, keep him busy!" Pierce commanded as he back-pedalled, retreating to Eve's position.

"Okay!" Inky grinned, rolling onto her back and lifting Syrus into the air, trying to restrain him with her tentacles. But Syrus hissed, "Sssleeping Venom," and manifested a dart in his hand, which he promptly drove into Inky's flesh. Pierce cursed, and Inky moaned as the effects were immediate. "I feel sleepy," the kraken groaned, her eyes starting to drop closed and her grip loosening enough that, with a flex, Syrus broke free. Pierce rapidly played the tune to recall her and paused, frantically trying to think of a way to defeat him. The problem was that he was using beasts to fight someone who hunted the, for a living.

"That'sss Beassst Tamer Magic, isssn't it?" Syrus hissed.

"What does it matter to you?" Pierce questioned. Stalling for time would be helpful. He surreptitiously nudged Eve with his foot, and she groaned, regaining consciousness after her fall, before frantically grabbing for her Celestial keys.

"Oh, come now. Can't you sssow a little ssssolidarity for two massstersss of the sssame kind of magic?"

The Tamer's eyes widened at this admission. "You're a Beast Tamer wizard?"

"Indeed I am," Syrus nodded. "Though I don't ussse that magic in quite the sssame way you do, guilder. For me, Beassst Tamer Magic isss a meansss to capture the beastsss I hunt,"

"Really?" Pierce's eyebrows slid together in anger.

"Indeed. It'sss ssso peassseful, really - asss sssoon asss my quarry hearsss the musssic, they're putty in my handsss. Ready for me to do whatever I pleassse with them,"

"That's horrible!" Pierce growled.

"You're correct, it isss," Syrus agreed, a statement that caught the Tamer off guard. "Look where it got me, after all," he stated, gesturing at his warped body.

"Where it - oh," Pierce suddenly recalled a warning that he had received from the man who had made the pocket dimension lacrima in his flute; "Quick warning, though, kid. Never try to use your Tamer magic on another human. There'll be dire consequences if you do,"

"You tried to tame another human," he realised.

"Indeed I did," Syrus admitted. "And the consssequences were sssevere,"

"We'd been hired to perform a kidnapping of a nobleman' daughter. The client wanted to blackmail the man by holding hisss four-year-old daughter hossstage. I sssuppossse he thought that if we hunted monstersss for a living, catching a human would be easssy. Old fool. Nonethelesssss, we acsssepted, and I sssuggesssted that we ussse my magic to make it sssimple. Boy, wasss I wrong," the snake man sighed.

Eve squeaked in shock, hearing this, and began to shake uncontrollably. Pierce noticed this and knelt down, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder and squeezing.

"When I tried to go through with it, there wasss an unintentional result. To thisss day, I don't know what happened or why, but the violin that I channelled the Tamer magic through exploded, releasssing all the beassstsss I had captured there. One of them wasss a basssilisssk, and the magical explosssion fusssed me with it. And I've been ssstuck like thisss ever sssince," Syrus explained with a dark look on his countenance, rubbing his scaly chest.

"That poor basilisk," Pierce wryly observed, filing this information away. So that was why this man was wearing sunglasses. Any being that looked into a basilisk's eyes was turned to stone. He probably wore them so that he didn't accidentally petrify anyone who looked at him.

"You think you're funny, huh kid. But I've heard it all before," Syrus growled. "At leassst the little bitch that causssed thisss messssss got what 'e dessserved. 'E got fused with one of the beasts I had too,"

Pierce suddenly felt Eve's panic redouble, and heard quiet sobs. What was going on with her? "Eve, stand up. Be strong," he quietly encouraged her.

"Never did find out what happened to her afterwards, but I don't care,"Syrus shrugged.

Pierce was about to declare his behaviour despicable, but, shockingly, Eve pre-empted him. "W-well . . well you should," she groaned, struggling to her feet. Pierce helped her up, and as he did, he noticed an expression that he'd never expected to see in her eyes; anger. "Because you're looking at her!"

~P's E~

October 15, in the year X774. Eve Tangelia was four years old, and the well-to-do daughter of Mr. Nicolas Tangelia, who in turn was the wealthy head of one of the leading lacrima production companies in Fiore.

And one of Mr. Tangelia's competitors had come up with the brilliant idea to hire Severed Tusk to kidnap the man's daughter for him, so he could sell his rival's daughter back to him in exchange for his company.

So Eve was playing in the garden, when, on that day, she heard the sweetest, most beautiful music she'd ever heard. It sounded like a violin, and, enthralled, Eve immediately began searching for the source.

Before long, she found it. There was a tall man in a red-and-white striped shirt and brown pants, with a khaki coat. He did look kind of scary, but he was holding this violin and using it to play such lovely music, so he couldn't be bad. Right?

Ooh, and now a swirly light was appearing in front of the man. It was so sparkly and pretty, and it was calling to her, inviting her in.

The man was smiling now. The smile was as ugly as the rest of him, but the music was so sweet, and the lights were so pretty. She wanted to reach out and touch it, and she did, raising an arm with a finger outstretched.

Her flesh made contact with the Beast Tamer magic portal.

At the time, young Eve had no idea what had happened. There was a flash of light, and the portal vanished and the violin exploded, expelling several shapes that launched out in all directions. A long squiggly one flew into the ugly man's body, and one that looked like some kind of bird shot straight into her - and suddenly pain blossomed all over her body. Eve cried out in shock, feeling setting happen to her, and believing the strange man to be the source of the pain, as well as the fact that the music had stopped, she fled, running back the way she had come, back into the main garden and towards where her mother was.

Mrs. Tangelia gasped, seeing her daughter. "Eve? What happened to you?" she asked, and her eyes widened as she made out more details; tawny white feathers with brown speckles were growing out of her daughter's arms, and she could see her bare feet growing scaly and becoming claws. But for all that, Eve was still recognisable as her daughter, and obviously in discomfort, so she scooped her up and did her best to comfort her daughter, even as the transformative curse took full effect.

~P's E~

As soon as her husband heard about what had happened, he immediately summoned the best magical doctor he could find to inspect his daughter.

"She appears to have been inflicted with some kind of curse, though not one I can say that I'm familiar with," Dr. Jantos, the wizard he had hired, explained to Mr. Tangelia and his wife as they comforted their daughter. By now, the transformative curse of the perverted Beast Tamer magic had taken full effect, and her arms, as well as her body from the waist down, had been coated in speckled brown/white feathers, and her hair had completely changed into matching plumage, while her thighs and feet were covered by scales with talons on her toes. "There don't seem to be any effects other than the physical transformation, which is relieving, however the magic that is forcing the change is extremely strong, and I can't say that I understand that either. That said, I do not believe I could break it," he apologetically explained.

"Then what good are you?" Nicolas Tangelia demanded. The man normally wasn't prone to random bursts of anger, but considering the state his daughter was in, his nerves were on the brink of snapping.

"Wait. I cannot break it, however -" Dr. Jantos paused, seeming indecisive.

Eve's mother stared at him. "Please. No matter how low the chances may be, or how much it will cost. If there's something we can do, tell us,"

"Alright. I must warn you that there is no proven basis for what I'm about to tell you," the wizard admitted. "However, legend has it that, at the top of Mount Zheng, lives a demigod known as the Divine Caladrius, who can cure any ailment. I'm not sure if the legend is true, but if anything can break this curse, the Caladrius can,"

"Thank you," Nicolas nodded, smiling. "It's time to prepare a trip to Mount Zheng,"

~P's E~

So an airship was chartered, and a voyage prepared to sail to Mt. Zheng. It wasn't long before the Tangelias had landed atop the mountain, where they found a village full of strange beings like small dragons but without wings, whose coats shone with precious gems, and were approached by an elderly being with a pelt like diamond.

"My name is Zenophus, and I am the elder of Qilin Village," he greeted them. "Why do you come to our village?"

"We seek the Divine Caladrius, so she may break our daughter's curse," Nicolas Tangelia explained.

Zenophus peered at them for a moment, and nodded. "Very well. Come. I will take you to her,"

Soon, they were walking into the massive marble shrine. Even Eve, who had been miserable since the curse had been put into effect on her, was awed at the simple elegance of the shrine's splendour.

And then they saw her.

Reclining at the peak of a great dais, looking to be in a state of perfect harmony with the world around her, was a massive bird, three times the height of a grown man. The Divine Caladrius turned her head to see the people who had entered her shrine and watched the three humans, led by her trusted qilin aide, approached.

The Tangelias paused in the centre of the room, looking up at the great bird as, spreading her wings, the Divine Caladrius glided down towards them and landed on the floor of the shrine, directly in front of them, keeping her eyes shut the whole while. "Greetings, humans," Though she did not open her eyes or her beak, a voice that was unmistakably hers echoed through the building. "What have you brought me?"

"P-please. Our daughter, she was cursed," Mr. Tangelia explained as his wife held up little Eve for the demigod to inspect, and she did, leaning forwards and scrutinising Eve. How she accomplished this with her eyes shut was unknown, and no one was rude enough to ask.

"I see," the Caladrius gracefully bobbed her head, wiht her eyes still closed, and something shifted in the muscles around her beak. The humans didn't recognise the expression, but Zenophus did. She was smiling. "I can remove this," she agreed, "but are you certain that I should?"

"Well . . yes," Nicolas Tangelia nodded.

"Because it seems to be that your daughter has been given a gift, an opportunity to be more than she would as a normal human. Are you sure it should be so rashly disposed of?" The Caladrius' tone was not judgemental, and, indeed, she did not want to influence the humans' opinions on the matter one way or another. She just wanted to be sure that they had looked at the matter from every perspective.

"Please. She is in pain," Mrs. Tangelia replied, shaking her head.

It was all that the Caladrius needed, and something in her gaze changed at that. "I understand," she nodded, leaning over the cursed child . . and she opened her eyes.

Glowing white orbs that shone like the sun momentarily dazzled everyone else in the room, forcing them to look away, and so they did not see as brown energy became to coalesce over Eve's skin, and the transformation slowly reversed as the mist separated itself from Eve's body. Feathers retracted into skin, and claws shrunk back into toes, and, after only a moment, the Caladrius closed her eyes once more. "It is done," she spoke without opening her mouth.

Sure enough, when her parents looked back at her, Eve was cured. Exactly the way that she been before. "Thank you," Nicolas Tangelia nodded, plaintively grateful.

"You are most welcome," Suddenly, the Caladrius spread wings flecked with brown and lifted herself upwards, throwing herself backwards onto her perch once more. "I must rest. Zenophus, please show them out, and make them feel welcome in the village for as long as they wish to stay," she commanded.

"Of course, my lady," the aged qilin nodded, rapidly ushering the humans out of the building.

~P's E~

The next day, after being treated to dinner and allowed to stay for the night by the qilins, the Tangelias returned home. While it was obvious that the experience had left Eve traumatised, they hoped that therapy would help. It didn't, though, and for years the man who had tried to kidnap her haunted her memory, causing her to grow into a meek and shy girl.

Their happiness didn't last, though. Nicolas Tangelia's competitor refused to pay Severed Tusk for botching the kidnapping, and continued to work to take over the company. It took another seven years, but, eventually they succeeded. The Tangelias were left with nothing, to the point where they could barely feed themselves.

Realising that providing for her was a burden on her parents, Eve, then twelve years old, swallowed her fear of the unknown and struck out on her own, searching for a wizarding guild to join. At a younger age, her grandmother had taught her basic Celestial magic, hoping it might boost her fragile confidence, and she planned to use this.

And so it was that, in the year X782, Eve had become part of the Phoenix's Eye guild. And, because she had never forgotten what the Caladrius had done for her, when she overheard from Team Pierce that she might be in danger, Eve knew that she had to swallow her fear once more and help out.

~P's E~

"It was you," Eve realised as she stood up. "You're the monster that's haunted my nightmares for years!"

Syrus was dumbfounded. "You . . no. It can't be. That girl wasss cursssed, I sssaw it!"

"I was healed, by the Divine Caladrius," Eve succinctly told him.

Evidently, this was a possibility that had not even occurred to Syrus. "The Caladriusss could free me of this curssse," he said the words in wonder. "To be human onssse more,"

Eve's body shook. At first, Pierce thought it was fear, but then realised that the brunette was angry. "Y-you . . you won't. I won't allow it,"

"What are you talking about now?" the cursed man hissed in irritation.

"A m-monster like you . . deserves everything he's got!" Eve declared, clenching her Keys and pulling one from the ring. "Open, Gate of the North Star! Polaris!"

There was a doorbell, and the Inuit-looking woman in her white/navy blue ensemble appeared, crouching in a combat stance before them. "I heard everything," Eve's oldest Spirit growled at the hunter, before launching herself forwards.

With a flourish, Syrus tore his sunglasses away from his eyes, and stared straight into Polaris' face - and she froze in place.

Pierce gasped, immediately covering Eve's eyes. "Look away!" he commanded, and both immediately turning their backs on the basilisk man.

"He's a basilisk. His gaze can turn people to stone," the Tamer hissed.

"Oh, if only that were the cassse. I'm not a full basssilisssk, therefore my abilitiesss don't have quite that much kick. But my gassse ssstill freesssesss in plassse anyone that meetsss it," Syrus placidly informed them. "How do you intend to fight me now, puny guildersss? You can't even look at me,"

"Close, Gate of the North Star," Eve quietly commanded, and Polaris vanished behind them. "I hope she'll be alright,"

"Celestial Spirits are immortal, she'll be fine," Pierce reassured her, thinking rapidly. There had to be something he could do to defeat this guy. But how could he possibly fight without looking at his opponent?

"I think I have an idea," Eve whispered. "Open, Gate of the Beetle! Scarabus!" There was a doorbell, and a heaving black mass of insects appeared. "Scarabus, can you cover us?"

The swarm seemed to nod - somehow - and put itself between them and Syrus.

"Climb!" the two humans heard a faint hiss, and, looking up, saw Cor hiding in the branches of a nearby tree. Seeing him, Pierce realised that the qilin was right. If they could get above their foe, they could attack him with an advantage. With a leap, he jumped upwards, grasping the branches of a nearby tree, and pulled himself into the canopy, before reaching down to grasp Eve's arm and hoist her up behind him.

"Cover his eyes, Scarabus!" the Celestial wizard commanded, and Pierce raised his eyebrows. That was a good plan. As long as the multitude of bugs that Scarabus consisted of totally covered their enemy's eyes, he couldn't petrify them, and while Scarabus himself wasn't looking into them but covering them with his bodies, he would be unaffected too.

The theory was proven true when Syrus clutched at his eyes, trying to clear the bugs away from them.

"Alright. My turn," Pierce was about to draw breath to summon a beast, but paused. They still had to try to avoid detection by the other hunters, and the majority of his beasts were hardly inconspicuous, mostly due to their size. The only exceptions were Crystal, Knox and Victoria, and the volcanic climate here was too hot and dry for Crystal to be efficient, Victoria would be hampered by the close quarters conditions, and Knox . . being around at night made him . . loud. He'd have to use a Take Over spell.

Pierce briefly ran through a list of his beasts, and realised with a gulp that, in addition to the problems he'd already discarded, merging with Raya would be bad because the amount of light their fire would generate would attract attention . . and possibly burn the forest down to boot. Merging with Kit was possible, but wouldn't be much help. Which meant there was only one practical option . . though, calling it 'practical' was a stretch, he had to admit. "Take Over: Kraken!" he commanded.

Instantly, his skin thickened and became rubbery and black, as suckers developed on his arms and legs. Clothing warped away as his skull elongated into the arrowhead shape of a kraken's, and four additional limbs appeared on his back; two below his shoulders and two above his legs. Finally, his mouth extended into a short beak, and Pierce felt Inky's presence alongside him as the spell was completed. "Alright!" he grinned, throwing himself towards Syrus with tentacles extended.

However, in spite of being blinded, Syrus still extended a thickly muscled arm and caught him, wrapping sausage-like, scaly fingers around his chest.

In response, Pierce flexed his tentacles and started using one to slap the hunter in the face. Scarabus parted around him for each blow while still covering the man's eyes, but the blows didn't have much effect - until Pierce realised that he was targeting the wrong area, and, using one of his lower tentacles, suckered a rock from the ground onto the end of it, and slammed the impromptu weapon into his foe's crotch.

Syrus choked and lost his grip on Pierce, who immediately laid into him, using his tentacles as additional arms to deliver an onslaught of punches.

"Poissson Venom!" Syrus cried, creating a dart in his hand and throwing it at Pierce, where it bounced off the rubbery blackness that had covered his body. "Sorry, man. Krakens have thick skin," the transformed Tamer commented with a chuckle, and delivered a staggering uppercut to his chin.

"Sssleeping Venom! Ssstun Venom! Healing Venom? Anything?" Myriads of magic darts flew from Syrus' hands, but none penetrated Pierce's skin, and the Tamer simply kept laying into him.

And, eventually, Syrus could take no more. Without the primary offence provided by his eyes, he simply didn't have any way to combat a being whose skin was too thick for his darts to penetrate. "Yeargh," he moaned, finally collapsing.

"Yes!" Eve squeaked, but Pierce cautioned her. "Hold on! He could be faking!"

A couple of the individual bugs buzzed up to him, carrying what Pierce recognised as Syrus' sunglasses, and hummed inquisitively. "Good idea. Put them on him," he nodded, as, with a muted flash, the Take Over ended. "Eve, Cor? Help me find some vines or something to restrain him," he commanded.

"Nope. There aren't any vines in this forest," Cor shook his head.

"Well, we need to restrain him somehow," Pierce pointed out.

Scarabus buzzed, and most of him flew away . . returning after a moment, carrying what looked a lot like an uprooted tree, which he unceremoniously dumped on Syrus's chest, making sure that his arms were pinned.

Pierce regarded the arrangement with a thoughtful look, before nodding. "Yeah, I think that'll do," he agreed as Eve and Cor climbed out of the tree. "Come on, everyone. We still need to get to the shrine,"

"Right this way!" the ruby qilin agreed, leading on.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **Can I just say, it is REALLY FUN to write fight scenes that involve professional hunters like the Severed Tusk wizards. The way they think in regards to a fight is so different to normal wizards, it's thrilling. If anyone reading this gets the opportunity, I recommend contriving a such scenario in your own Fairy Tail-based works.**

 **And while this may be an arc focused on Pierce primarily, I never say no to the opportunity to include development for other characters because it just adds even more flavour, which is never a bad thing. Peace!**


	47. To Trap A Dragon In Chains

Chapter 47: To Trap A Dragon In Chains

While Pierce, Eve and Cor were fighting Syrus, the rest of the Phoenixes were sneaking into the village.

"Okay, so, what do we do if we run into trouble?" Boomer asked. "And, what are you eating?"

Tyria hastily swallowed the piece of steel she'd been chewing on. "Just a little snack," she whispered, which was technically the truth. "And we're all strong wizards. We can handle ourselves,"

"She's right," Sarph nodded. "Okay, this is where we split up,"

"We'll find the cages," Grace nodded.

"And the two of us are taking out the hunters," Tyria grinned. With all the emotional stress she'd been through recently, it would be good to do something simple and cathartic. Like fighting.

With that, the pairs split off, and Grace crouched behind Boomer as he led the way down a side-street. "Do you think Tyria has a TechType: Teeth spell or something?" the Sound wizard asked.

"Maybe?" Grace shrugged. "Why?"

"Just, when she was chewing, it sounded a lot like metal. I know Tyria has the machine thing going on, but techno teeth? That's taking it a bit far, y'now?"

"Yeah, I guess it is," the Dragon Slayer nodded.

"Though, while we're on the topic, I could definitely go for some techno pop right about now," Boomer mused as they paused, hidden within the shadow of a building on the main square. "Look! The cages!"

Sure enough, throughout the square were dozens upon dozens of cages, each with a quartet of qilins stuffed into it. "That's a lot of cages," Boomer gulped. "Could you use your Reality magic to get them out?"

"I'd . . rather not," Grace gulped.

"What about breaking all the cages open at once?" the Sound wizard suggested, but Grace rejected that too. "The spatial parts of my magic don't work that way . . my Roar could probably break a bunch open, but it's pretty loud and someone might get hurt by it. I think we'll have to - shush!"

Both were silent as the door to the building they were standing nearby swung open, and a scantily clad women with orange pigtails emerged, stretching. "God, I don't know how those monsters can stand to sleep in those drafty huts with their ricepaper walls," Juniper moaned, clutching her arms to herself as she strode outside. "I don't care if we're on top of a volcano! It's still goddamn cold!" she declared as she vanished into one of the streets on the far side of the town square, no doubt making for one of the various caravans parked around town.

"That was close. If she'd turned around, she'd have seen us," Boomer shook his head. "Come on, let's get to work,"

Almost silently, he crept out from the cover and began to cross the square, making for the nearest cages as Grace followed him - and, suddenly, his foot went straight through what should have been solid rock. Boomer stifled a panicked scream as he pitched forwards, tumbling into the hole that had just been revealed, and Grace gasped, rushing to the edge. "Boomer? Are you alright?" she whisper-shouted.

The Sound Wizard, who had fallen into a hole ten feet deep, groaned where he'd fallen on his chest. "Urgh . . should have figured that this place would be booby-trapped," he groaned. "I'm fine, but I'm a bit stuck,"

"Uh . ." Grace knew that she and Boomer were both too short to reach each other to pull him out. "Maybe I can find some rope or something,"

"Don't bother," a voice coolly commanded, and suddenly Grace felt a pair of hands behind her shove her into the pit. Instinctively, her Reality magic activated, and she vanished into a hole in reality before she could hit the bottom.

Kroeber, standing behind them, had been all set to deliver a spiel about how satisfying it was to have captured a pair of pesky guilders, when the words were stolen from his mouth by Grace's disappearance. "What the hell?" he finally questioned, immediately stepping back from the pit trap to ensure that he wasn't taken by surprise and knocked into it himself.

Not that it did him all that much good. Grace, who had landed on top of the mountain of cages before them, inhaled and called, "Reality Dragon's . ." before opening a rift with her free hand and pushing her head into it, which promptly appeared on the ground directly behind Kroeber. "ROAR!" Grace shouted, and the vortex of grey energy smashed into the portly trapper's posterior, launching him into the air, where he slammed into the pile of cages, sending tremors throughout the structure. Grace wobbled and frantically retracted her head before her own magic could cut it off, and, jumping, opened a rift directly beneath her, which she fell into and emerged near the fountain.

The cage pile shook, and the qilins within watched in fear, as Kroeber righted himself and noticed where Grace was standing. He grinned and snapped his fingers.

Suddenly, giant metal spikes appeared out of nowhere on the ground around her, immediately swinging upwards and threatening to cut Grace in half at the waist if she hadn't jumped out of the trap with seconds to spare. "What was that?" she gasped.

"I suppose you haven't heard," Kroeber climbed down. "I'm part of Severed Tusk. A hunter's guild. But me, I don't crawl through forests with a gun looking for things to shoot. I'm a trapper. I set traps and watch my prey blunder into them," He folded his arms and smiled nastily. "And right now, _you_ are my prey,"

Grace frowned, looking around, though she knew it was no good. There could be traps anywhere, and considering that she hadn't seen the pit or the spikes until it was almost too late, she wouldn't notice any of the others. "What magic are you using? Illusions?"

"No, I leave that to Juniper," Kroeber shrugged as he climbed down from the cages, standing in front of them and continuing to face Grace. "You know, I don't have any particular quarrel with you, little girl. If you walk away now, I won't come after you. I'll even let your guilder friend out,"

"And what about all of them?" Grace questioned, gesturing at the qilins in the cages behind the trapper.

Kroeber frowned, before realising what she was talking about. "What, the animals? That's different. They are profit,"

"They are living beings with just as much right to freedom as you or me!" Grace retorted.

The bald man rolled his eyes. "Ugh, you're one of those monster rights junkies. I should have figured. Creatures like this exist to be exploited, girlie. You hear people talk about natural order and junk like that, but there's something you don't realise. Humans are at the top of the food chain. We rule the world, and everything else is our food. The entire world belongs to us and so does everything in it. Some of us just enjoy playing with our food before we eat it,"

"You're despicable," Grace growled.

"I am an apex predator. I'm just doing what my instincts tell me, just like all of them," Kroeber tched.

"You think you're at the top of the food chain, huh? That humans are the strongest creatures in nature," Grace growled. She gritted the draconian fangs in her mouth. "But there's something you haven't considered,"

"And what's that?" Kroeber laconically questioned, but blinked. Suddenly, Grace had vanished.

"There's nothing that's mightier than a dragon! Reality Dragon's Roar!" Suddenly, the girl was high above him, and another blast of grey energy smashed into him, knocking him backwards. Grace landed, with the pit that contained Boomer between the two combatants.

"So, you fancy yourself a dragon, eh?" Kroeber raised his eyebrows, but shook his head. "If only. You, you're simply a pretender. A human who can use magic that's dragon-like in aesthetics," he tched. "Sometimes, I dream that I could hunt something like a dragon, and lament the fact that they're extinct. But they _are_ extinct. And taking down a little girl who's deluded herself into thinking that using that kind of magic allows her to count herself among them? There's nowhere near as much satisfaction in that. You're barely even worth my time," And with that, he snapped his fingers, and, suddenly, a massive log on a rope swung out of nowhere and slammed into the Dragon Slayer, sending her sprawling across the square. Kroeber pointed to a patch of ground and a cage materialised out of it, which Grace immediately flew into, landing against the bars with a thunk.

Kroeber shook his head as he walked around the pit and advanced on her. "So very boring," he sighed. "Eh. Maybe Master will have some idea on what we can do with her,"

He looked up at the sky. "Almost morning, and I haven't slept at all. Thank goodness for coffee, am I right?" he asked the cage, before blinking.

The cage was empty.

"You know, there's a _fundamental_ flaw with trying to use a cage to capture a wizard that uses spatial magic," Grace stared him down to his left, and Kroeber rounded on her, taken by surprise, and mentally kicking himself as he realised she was right. He should have seen that coming. He raised his arm, no doubt to activate another trap, but the Dragon Slayer beat him to it, jumping into another pocket of bent space as she spread her arms wide.

"Reality Dragon's Spiral Slash!" Spinning as she appeared behind him, Grace plowed into Kroeber and knocked him forwards with centrifugal waves of grey magic. She paused over him in a dynamic pose, and was about to hit him again, when Kroeber weakly snapped his fingers.

A spring-loaded section of the ground shot up under Grace's feet, catapulting her into the air and buying the trapper all the time he needed to recover.

"Reality Dragon's Pronged Plumage!" Erupting from another rift in front of him, spikes of bent reality formed to crown the Dragon Slayer's head, and she used them, along with the redirected momentum she had picked up, to deliver a staggering headbutt to her enemy.

"Hey, I just realised," Grace commented. "I never got your name,"

Kroeber wheezed as he recovered again, glaring at the Dragon Slayer. "Kroeber. But don't tell me yours, guilder. You won't last long enough for it to matter," He placed his hands together and planted himself in the ground, his shrunken, beady eyes glaring at her with unrestrained malice. "Ultimate Trap Technique: Thousand Chains Of Eternal Entrapment!"

Black chains erupted from every surface around Grace like lightning; the floor, the fountain, the nearby buildings, and wrapped around her, binding her arms tight against her sides, locking her legs in place and wrapping around her head, to completely restrict any movement. Her eyes widened, and something flashed to the forefront of her mind; _chains, binding her in place, forcing her to be still while people did horrible things to her._

"Nothing escapes my ultimate trap," Kroeber cackled, and for a second, Grace saw him as one of the horrible people who'd turned her into what she was. Her gaze became like orange glass for a moment, but she screwed her eyes shut and gritted her teeth. No. Not now. She was strong. She was a phoenix dragon. She wasn't going to let this beat her!

"I wonder what I'll be able to do with you. A Dragon Slayer's gotta be worth something," Kroeber mused, before frowning. There was something . . wrong about the bound girl in front of him. She was . . flickering. The outlines of the chains around her as he perceived them were getting blurry, as though there were a heat haze around her.

Or, he realised with a shiver, as if the fabric of reality itself were being placed under immense strain by an unseen force.

There was a sudden crack, and the chains around Grace's face snapped open, revealing that her fangs were bared in a mixture of pain and anger. "Not again! Never again!" she shrieked, and, with a flare of grey magic that bent reality itself, the chains binding her shattered into dust. "I'll never again be beholden to men like you!"

Kroeber gasped, but Grace wasn't finished. Acting on instinct, she raised her right arm upwards, before bringing it down in a sweeping circle. As she did, a hollow sphere of rippling reality magic appeared around her, rapidly extending until it had enveloped both her and Kroeber. "Dragon Slayer's Secret Art!" Grace growled through clenched fangs, cupping her hands together as a flickering black/orange ball of energy appeared in them. "Dark Matter: Black Flare Supernova!" With that, she reversed her hands, rotating them around each other, and forced the miniature supernova within them forwards, where it soared through the air, before detonating inches from Kroeber's prone form in a massive explosion of orange and black energy that generated massive bursts of grey smoke. And when it cleared, the trapper had been thrown away, blasted into unconsciousness and thrown against the massive pile of cages with a concussive detonation.

There was a squeal of protesting metal, and then, overwhelmed by the force of the impact, the stack of cages began to tip, collapsing backwards and scattering across the street behind them. The force of the impact bent several of the cages enough that the captives could prise themselves free, and still more were sprung open. The freed qilins rapidly set themselves about letting loose the rest of their brethren.

Grace grinned, relaxing, but remaining on guard in case Kroeber wasn't alone. "Whew. I did it! I won a fight without passing out!" she cheered. "Go me!"

"That's great," Boomer huffed from fifteen feet to her right and ten feet down. "Now can you get me out of this blasted pit?!"

~P's E~

"It's just through there," Cor hissed, before blinking.

They were on the edge of the forest, staring across the fifty or so metres of grass that separated them from the shrine. Grass that had been blocked by a hedge of barbed wire and with hunters patrolling it. No doubt the fortifications were just as much to prevent escape as they were to prevent aid.

"That wasn't there before," Cor gulped.

Pierce groaned. "Why did you clear the forest? Why didn't you just let the trees grow up to the shrine?"

"It was to prevent people sneaking up on it without being spotted!" Cor whined, wringing his forelegs in despair as the sheer irony of the situation hit him.

"Well, we're going to have to get through somehow," Pierce sighed, looking around - and froze.

Strolling along the fortified perimeter was a tall man with a black cloak and helmet, with the butt of a rifle protruding over his shoulder. "It . . it's him," Pierce paled, instinctively ducking behind the tree. Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to stay calm and not do anything that might give away their position.

"Who is it?" Eve whispered. She had been hiding behind another tree and not seen anything.

"My father," Pierce hissed through gritted teeth, so silently that Eve could barely hear him.

Jarod Blastreyne gave cursory glances over everything as he patrolled the perimeter, and watched in mild amusement as each one of his tired, bored subordinates snapped to attention eh saw him approach. He chuckled at the sight. Lackeys were so amusing.

"Damn. Seven years and he hasn't changed a bit," Pierce quietly observed.

"You have, though," Cor muttered to him, and Pierce, noticing that the qilin was eyeing him more critically than usual, guessed that he was taking another look at his heart. "Yeah. Seven or eight years ago, I would have been up there with him,"

"I'm glad you aren't," Eve offered with a nervous smile, and Pierce nodded. A thought struck him, and he tapped his flute, whispering, "Kit? Could you come out here? But be quiet,"

With a muted flash, Kit appeared. The yokai immediately realised how serious the situation was, and cut the usual wisecracking. "Situation?"

"Follow that man. Spy on him and see what you can find out," Pierce commanded.

"That's your dad, isn't it?" the spectral fox whispered, and Pierce nodded. "Yeah. Find out -" He had been going to say, 'what he's doing about the shrine', but his voice caught as a myriad of other questions assailed his mind about his father. "What you can," he finished.

Realising how hard this was for his friend, Kit nodded. "Alright. Back soon," he declared, and vanished.

"Alright," Pierce finally sighed when his father had disappeared from vision. "How are we going to get inside?"

"Well, um, I might have one idea," Eve nervously ventured as a couple of snowflakes absent-mindedly played around her hand. "If I stir up a snowstorm, the low visibility could be enough to get us through without being spotted, as long as we're quiet,"

"No. Even in winter, a spontaneous localised snowstorm would be too suspicious," Pierce shook his head.

"I think I have something. I've been peering into that guard's heart, and it turns out that he's really scared of ghosts," Cor grinned, baring sharp teeth and flicking his tail in excitement. "How good are you two at making spooky noises?"

A/N

 **A/N**

 **I think that went well. ^^**

 **Just reminding everyone one more time about the Chapter 50 Q/A session. Seriously. I don't have enough questions to fill a whole chapter! And I probably won't do something like this for another year. Any question. Anything you can think of, for anyone in the story. Come on, I need something! Peace!**


	48. The Illusion Shatters

Chapter 48: The Illusion Shatters

"Whoooooooooooo," A ghost-fearing hunter guard, stationed around the rear of the shrine, heard a strange noise and looked unsettled, snatching up his rifle and looking around.

There was a sudden flash of light behind a tree, and he flinched, pointing his gun in that direction with shaking hands. Was that a pale face peering through the trees? No, it was gone.

Now there was a sudden thumping noise. Like distant, heavy footsteps . . drawing nearer. The hairs on the back of the man's neck stood on end.

What was that light? Like a pair of smouldering coals had appeared for the briefest second in the boughs of a tree. "Oi, Mike? Are you seeing this?" the guard called to one of his watch-mates.

"It's your imagination, Drew. Quit jumping at shadows," his companion responded.

There she was again! The pale lady, dressed in white and navy blue! She was a - but no! She couldn't be! And now she was gone, in a flash of light! She'd disappeared right before his eyes! Just like a . . .

"Whooooooooooooo," There was that noise again! Exactly like the sound of a . . .

"GHOST!" Drew screamed, dropping his gun and bolting. Nearby, Mike watched his companion go and groaned. "God, Drew, you idiot!" he sighed, running after his teammate.

Eve pocketed the key that belonged to Polaris, their very own 'ghost', and grinned as Cor scrambled down from the tree he'd hidden in and Pierce removed the piece of wood he'd strapped to his foot to make loud, heavy 'footsteps'. "Well, that takes care of that. Let's go,"

"What about the qilin guards? I'm sure they'll be reluctant to let us inside," Cor reasoned.

"They can look into our hearts. That should prove to them that we aren't with the hunters and want to help them," Pierce shrugged. "Come on, it's only a matter of time until the guards come back!" With that, the three scrambled out of the forest and made a dash across the exposed meadow separating them from the shrine, fully prepared to scramble over the hedge that was now their only obstacle.

~P's E~

Inside his caravan, Motormouth snored like a freight train as, silently, Tyria stacked debris against the doors to keep them from opening.

"Good job," Sarph nodded, doing the same with the caravan that had been stacked on top of Tyria's one and accessed through a flimsy wooden railing. "I have to wonder why they piled the caravans on top of one another," he muttered.

"I guess they all wanted to stick close together," the tech wizard shrugged, looking around for more junk lying around that she could stack.

"Makes sense," Sarph admitted. "Come on, there's still lots of caravans around here we need to seal up,"

"Are we sure this will work? For all we know they'll have magic that'll let them blow through the walls of the caravans," Tyria pointed out, but Sarph shook his head. "Maybe, if these were ordinary caravans. But apparently Severed Tusk believes that they don't want to take any chance that their possessions might be damaged should one of their captive beasts get loose. These walls are extraordinarily thick and magically reinforced. Unless Jarod Blastreyne has abnormally good taste in lackeys, by the time any of the hired goons break through, the Magic Council will be here to arrest them all,"

"Great," Tyria grinned. She wheeled - and spotted a hunter behind her. Knowing there was no time for curses, she immediately invoked, "TechType: Tectonics!" and swung a whirling punch towards the unsuspecting enemy.

Hearing movement behind him, Sarph looked, and was shocked to discover a huntswoman armed with a mace bearing down on him. Sparing no time to wonder how she had gotten so close without being noticed, he threw up an Archive screen in front o him and shot his assailant with a golden laser.

Tyria stumbled, rearing back mid-strike. In a flash, the hunter she was facing had drawn his shotgun and shot her. The attack had hit her metal arm and done little damage, but she was still stunned. Deciding to try a ranged attack, she cupped her right arm with her left hand and invoked; "TechType: Machine Gun II!" Her new machine gun appeared, similar to the one she'd lost on the Alternative but now with eight barrels instead of six and a laser scope mounted on top, and she promptly used it to start firing at her enemy.

Sarph's eyes widened as the huntress facing him pulled a machine gun from the inside of her jacket, and started firing. He reached behind him to draw Solamion to deflect, but, as soon as his hand grasped the hilt, he felt the familiar sensation, like shattered ice, of a spell being broken, and suddenly he wasn't facing a random hunter, but Tyria in front of him, shooting at him.

"Tyria?" the golden knight gasped, before bringing his sword up to deflect as magic bullets bit into his armour. He frantically backed away, taking cover behind a caravan. "There's an illusion magic user somewhere around here," he growled, looking around. For a second his vision blurred and, watching Tyria, for a second she seemed to change back into the random huntress, but then Solamion's touch broke the spell again and his sight was as normal. He frowned, scouring his surroundings for the assailant. She was no doubt cloaking herself in illusion, but as long as he was holding Solamion, that would be of no issue to him.

There! On top of a nearby caravan, was a woman with orange pigtails and icy blue eyes, wearing lacy black underwear and an excess of fishnets. She was watching him and flourishing her arms with a grimace on thick, pouty lips. "Why won't this work on you?" Juniper muttered.

His Aera wings materialised, and Sarph took off, leaving Tyria to continue to batter the caravan he had been taking cover behind in the false belief that the hunter she was seeing him as was still hiding behind it. He knew that talking to Tyria was no good; an illusionist could prevent sound from reaching a person's ears by manipulating the light around their heads. He needed to beat the magician whose spell she was under.

Juniper, seeing him coming, blanched and leapt from the caravan she was standing on as Sarph buried his sword in the ground where she had been standing moments before. "Why isn't this working?" she demanded, no doubt trying to cast another illusion, but Sarph was impassive. He leapt down and confronted the huntress, hefting his sword, as she backed away, looking scared.

"My sword is the Spell-Shattering Sigil - Solamion," Sarph spoke with a smile. "The Wave enchantments on this weapon are so powerful that a single blow from this blade can sever the connection between a wizard and their spell. And when they aren't connected to a wizard to guide them, spells just vanish into the ethernano," he explained.

"The hell?" Juniper blinked. "That's insane!"

"Glad to see someone appreciates my exposition," Sarph darkly muttered, recalling what had happened when he tried to explain that to the soldiers in Teslon.

Meanwhile, Juniper was more than a little panicked. 'Shit. How am I supposed to fight a guy whose sword makes him immune to my illusions?'

Her gaze drifted to Tyria, still shooting at imaginary enemies, and a smile crossed her face. Ooh, this was going to be sweet.

"So, do you surrender, or -" Sarph was cut off as a hail of gunfire enveloped him. He spun to face the new attacker - and was shocked to see Tyria firing at him again, and, rather than retaliate, ducked behind cover once more.

"So that's how it's going to be, is it?" The angelic wizard cast around for the illusionist, but she was nowhere to be seen. "Damn, of course she'd good," he muttered lowly to himself.

Sarph briefly considered subduing Tyria of his own accord. It wasn't impossible - while his foreign teammate had been growing in power recently, he knew that, in a serious fight, he still had better chances of success. Especially if Tyria was under the belief that she was fighting some random lackey and Sarph's magic would take her by surprise. But even so . . thoughts of that day, just a few months ago, when a similar situation had transpired, came to him. The day that Artorias' mind had been warped by the black light of Nirvana, and that he had remorselessly attacked him. Sarph shook his head to himself. He hadn't fought his guildmate then, and his principles hadn't changed. He refused to let himself touch Tyria.

So he had to incapacitate the wizard bewitching her mind. Unfortunately, she was nowhere to be seen.

"TechType: Charge Whip!" Suddenly, something caught around Sarph's waist and pulled, even as a charge of electricity raced into his body. The man was forced out from cover and pulled himself free instantly, but then a huge metal punch nailed him in the face. He staggered backwards, and threw up a shield of thick Archive screens to defend himself.

Tyria blinked and faltered, recognising the magic, which Juniper hadn't managed to disguise in time. "Huh? Archive?" But as she did, the 'hunter' she was fighting was already dashing away into the distance. "Bah. One of these hunters must use the same kind of magic - but that doesn't explain where Sarph's gone," she wondered, looking around for her absent teammate.

If Tyria had been in a more stable state of mind, she would have realised that something was fishy about the situation. But the emotional turmoil she'd been dealing with over her conflicted feelings for Pierce and the confusing changes she was experiencing, which had only been amplified by Cor dredging up things she really didn't want to think about only a few hours ago, was clouding her higher reasoning. The only thing that wasn't confusing, that she could do without issue in her current state, was fighting. At least, that was her objective - so why wouldn't the dumb goon she'd been chasing after just stop and let her hit him?!

Juniper frantically dodged as Sarph, who had spotted her on top of another caravan roof, attacked with his sword once more. She cursed the fact that the restraints of her magic wouldn't allow her to hide somewhere - if she wanted the illusions Tyria was suffering from to be accurate, she had to be able to see everything that Tyria could see.

She spotted her own caravan across the road they had been chasing each other down, and leapt from the roof, making a frantic break for her sleeping chambers. Her gun was in there, if she could get to it she could defend herself. As she did, she heard Sarph rushing in pursuit, and allowed Tyria to hear the heavy noise of his footsteps, as she altered the illusion the Electrian was suffering from so that she was invisible and the hunter-Sarph seemed to be making a break for her caravan.

Tyria, spotting her quarry, rushed forwards. "You won't escape this time! TechType: Tectonics!" she shrieked, her nerves frayed to the point they were ready to snap.

Sarph heard her approach and broke his focus on Juniper, whirling with his blade and bringing up its flat to block. As Juniper disappeared into her caravan, Tyria's attack smashed into Sarph's sword, and, with a flash of blue light, the sword's Wave enchantments activated.

Two things happened. Tyria's hand reverted back to flesh, and she staggered, not expecting the sudden loss of balance. But the Wave played over her eyes too, shattering the illusions, and she blinked, as the hunter she'd been fighting suddenly turned into - "Sarph?"

"There's an illusion wizard on the loose. She tried to pit us against each other, but Solamion makes me immune to enchantments as long as it's touching my skin," Sarph briefly explained.

Tyria briefly flashed back to fighting Lorus. "I see," she grinned, recalling the way that she had beaten him. "TechType: Helmet! Engage infra-red vision!" The Shellshocker's helmet materialised on her face, the rectangular visor covering her eyes and glowing red with heat vision. "I didn't hurt you, did I?" the girl briefly questioned, and Sarph shook his head. "No, you stood no chance against me,"

"You sure? Because I remember landing some pretty good hits," Tyria pointed out with a smile under the mask, and Sarph shook his head as he rubbed his hip, where the Charge Whip had singed him. "Not even one. But anyway. She went in there," he gestured to the caravan in front of them.

"Alright," The Electria rounded on the caravan door, awaiting their opponent's exit.

"Any minute now," Sarph nodded.

"Any minute," Tyria nodded, gritting her teeth.

A minute passed.

"What's taking her?" Tyria demanded, looking around.

At the back of the caravan, Juniper, gun in hand, was crawling out of a window. "Stupid guilders," she chuckled, scrambling down to the ground and making a break for it.

"I'm going in," Tyria decided, as her impatience got the best of her, and she charged forwards, invoking her left arm's Tectonics. "Wait, the door could be trapped!" Sarph protested, but paused as his teammate promptly smashed the door in, as well as the wall around it. "Or not," he mused, following Tyria through the gaping hole she had punched in the caravan.

"It's empty!" the technology wizard cursed, looking around and spotting the open window.

"We need to find her," Sarph declared, stepping out from the smashed caravan and manifesting his Aera, before taking off. Tyria forced herself through the window after Juniper, planning to track her by ground. The thermal detectors wired into her optic nerves would render her immune to illusions. Unfortunately, due to the constraints of size, she couldn't trace heat through solid objects.

Meanwhile, Sarph spotted Juniper fleeing through a back alley. "Got you," he smirked, and with a flourish an Archive screen appeared at the end of the passageway she was running down.

Juniper ran head-first into it, and was stopped in her tracks by the solid-light construction.

Sarph landed behind her, and his wings vanished into stardust. "End of the road, hunter," he declared with a smile.

Juniper looked over her shoulder, her thick, black lips wearing a gothic smirk. "Are you so sure?" she purred. "Because I can think of things we could do together that are much more fun than fighting,"

Sarph raised an incredulous eyebrow. "Are you seriously trying to flirt with me _now_ , of all times?" he questioned, disbelieving.

"I suppose it was a long shot," Juniper admitted, wheeling on the balls of her slipper-clad feet, and revealing the rifle raised and ready to fire. "But either way, I'm scoring a bullseye," With a detonation, she fired.

In a flash, Solamion was between the bullet and Sarph's heart, and the bullet pinged off the golden claymore and embedded itself in the wood of the nearby wall. Juniper's lips parted, revealing gritted teeth, and in less than a second she retargeted, aiming between Sarph's eyes this time, and fired again.

Equally quickly, Sarph deflected the bullet again, sending it soaring into the sky, and stepping forward as he did to shorten the distance between them. "I can do this all day,"

Again, Juniper fired, and again, Sarph deflected the bullet with the blade of his sword, stepping forward as he did. Another shot, another ping, another step.

"Just die already!" Juniper demanded, offloading the gun's entire clip, another six shots, in rapid succession. In response, Sarph leant forward and smashed the first into the ground, before bringing Solamion up and deflecting the second. Kicking off the nearby wall, the knight swung his sword like a cricket bat to knock the third bullet out of the way, while effortlessly letting the fourth pass between his legs while he was in mid-air. In a nanosecond, he spun on one foot and brought Solamion up to cover his face before the fifth could penetrate his skull, and finally, with a vertical slash that made the air whistle with its speed, he cleaved the final bullet in half with the cutting edge of his sword.

Juniper's jaw fell open. "Tha . . that's not possible,"

The perfectly severed halves of the final bullet hit the ground at Sarph's feet, and, releasing his left hand from his sword's grip, the angelic warrior picked one of them up and inspected it. "Cute," he observed, before fixing the gothic huntress with a baleful glare from his amber eyes. "Care to try again?"

Her hands shook in fear as Juniper dropped her gun, before sinking to her knees. "I . . I surrender,"

"Good," Sarph smiled. "I hope Tyria isn't too upset that I finished the fight without her,"

"You what?" The man turned to see his foreign teammate at the far end of the alley. Tyria gritted her teeth, but breathed deeply and nodded. "Alright. Come on, let's . . lock her up with the other hunters," she accepted, trying not to let Sarph see how much she'd been looking forward to giving someone a good beating.

~P's E~

Back at the shrine, Pierce, Eve and Cor had just stepped onto the marble floor that surrounded the shrine for five metres in every direction when a pair of older-looking qilins appeared in front of them, smouldering red eyes glaring at them and clutching guns, probably stolen from the hunters, in their front paws. "State your business,"

"Whoa," Cor leapt in front of Pierce and Eve. "It's okay, Pietro, Klaus. It's me, Cor. And these humans came to help us,"

"Lofty words," Klaus, a black qilin with a sapphire-blue mane, frowned, but Pietro, who was jade with wheat-yellow ruffs, raised an eyebrow. "Well, there's one way to prove it. Watch them. I'm going to take a look at their hearts," he commanded Klaus, who rolled his eyes but nodded all the same. The jade qilin promptly squirted at first Pierce, then Eve, and finally checked Cor.

"Huh, didn't see that coming," he admitted at last.

"They're telling the truth?" Klaus frowned in surprise.

"Yeah. I think you three should come inside," Pietro accepted, retreating backwards and flicking his draconian tail as he kept an eye out for anyone watching them. However, the five entered the shrine unnoticed, and, a few minutes later, the skittish guards returned. "Wuss," Mike hissed at Drew, who rolled his eyes.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **I hope that this chapter illustrates why most people don't use guns against wizards. They are just absolutely** ** _useless_** **.**

 **Even so, the plot's progressing. And I still need more questions for the Chapter 50 Q/A! Come on, people, you only have two more weeks to submit them! Peace!**


	49. The Divine Caladrius

Chapter 49: The Divine Caladrius

Kit scurried through the undergrowth, keeping his yellow eyes on Jarod Blastreyne.

The hunter strode purposefully along a beaten track around the perimeter of the shrine. His hand was never more than a foot from the handgrip of his rifle.

The yokai watched as the head hunter eventually finished his patrol and entered a caravan that had been parked nearby. His personal one, judging by the fact that it was larger than the others nearby it, and even had a second storey mounted on the top, with a lime green/black paint job. Also, while the rest of the caravans were pulled by horses, this one had a gigantic black insect of some kind shackled to it with iron chains. Kit shivered, skirting the chained creature as he passed through the wall of the caravan and, upon entering the interior, promptly ducked underneath a chair to prevent the hunter from spotting him as he watched and listened.

As he took his position, though, Kit glanced around - and was suddenly glad that his fur was naturally white, so it couldn't turn that colour from shock. Even so, he made a quavering mental note to make sure that the red markings on his face hadn't been scared into a shade of pink.

The furnishings of the room were relatively normal; table, chairs, small kitchen, cupboards, and a hatstand near the door. A ladder allowed access to the upper floor of the caravan. However, Jarod had a very morbid taste in wall hangings.

Every foot of the walls around him was covered in wooden plaques, upon which were mounted stuffed heads of all descriptions. Reptiles, birds, mammals, fish, with a rainbow of colours and markings across them all. Looking around, Kit felt like he was inside a dead zoo.

"Explain yourself," Jarod demanded, and Kit spotted a bald man in overalls seated with him at a table.

"There were guilders, sir. They attacked me," Kroeber explained. "I caught one of them in a pit, but the other had spatial magic. None of my traps would hold her,"

"Well, that's unfortunate. But don't beat yourself up about it, old friend. We all get bad match-ups now and then," the lead hunter reassured his colleague. "But guilders?" Jarod cocked an eyebrow. "From which guild?"

"Phoenix's Eye, sir. That's the only guild with a little girl that uses Reality Dragon Slayer magic," Kroeber reported. Largely due to the efforts of Penny Prince, during the events with Phantom Lord, Regykraeon and the Oracion Och, several of the Phoenixes had become quite famous, Grace included.

"Phoenix's Eye," Jarod repeated, frowning to himself. "Well, then my upstart little whelp is probably here somewhere as well. It would be just like him to interfere in something like this,"

"Think we should pull out?" Kroeber questioned.

"We can't. It would take a full day just to mobilise the men, and it took a week to get all the caravans and loads up the mountain. It was hard enough doing that when the qilins didn't know we were here. We'll never get away unless it's on our terms," Jarod shot the suggestion down. He sighed. "There's nothing for it but to continue as we are. We'll have to take out the guilders and try to make sure that no one, beast or human, gets out to seek help again,"

"Again, sir?" Kroeber frowned.

"Think about it. This is the biggest operation we've pulled in years, and we took every precaution to ensure that there were no leaks," Jarod pointed out. "The only way these guilders could have known about our activities here is if one of the qilins escaped and went to fetch help. We need to make sure that doesn't happen again,"

"Right, sir. Of course," Kroeber nodded in agreement.

"Now, go get a couple of hours' sleep. I want you alert and ready for action in the morning, because that's when we're taking these animals back into custody, and renewing our assault on the shrine," Jarod ascertained, and, with this, Kroeber saluted and left.

As the door closed behind him, Jarod pinched the bridge of his nose with a sigh. "Pierce," he muttered the name to himself, and shook his head. "I suppose it was always just a matter of time until we came into conflict, son," he admitted.

Kit watched, waiting for Jarod to say something else, and he wasn't disappointed.

The hunter's fist clenched. "But that doesn't matter, does it?" Jarod shrugged. "I don't care if he is my son. I've put my life into building this guild, and if I succeed with this job, then I'll gain the power I need to stand alongside the greatest dark wizards in the land, and Severed Tusk's position in the Balam Alliance is all but assured. Today, I stand on the cusp of greatness, and no one will prevent me from taking the prize that I've earned," he resolved, and, as he spoke, his hand tightened around the butt of his gun.

~P's E~

"I think that's all of them," Tyria nodded as they secured the last of the caravans, a task that the newly freed qilin she had happily helped with. The hunters would now all be trapped in their own caravans, and if any managed to escape, the qilins were all ready to take their attackers down at any given moment, ten to one.

"Awesome," Boomer nodded. The four Phoenixes had reunited, of course, and now only Pierce and Eve were missing from their number.

"So, are we going after Pierce?" Grace asked, and Tyria nodded. "Of course. Problem is, the shrine's still surrounded by hunters,"

"Ah, I think we can help with that," one of the qilins nearby, with a topaz pelt and yellow mane, offered. "There's a secret tunnel under one of the houses that leads directly into the shrine. The hunters never found it,"

"Ahem. How big is this tunnel?" Sarph asked, casting a worried glance down at his ripped physique.

"Hmm. Maybe _you_ should stay behind," the qilin admitted. "The rest of you, though, follow me,"

Tyria, Boomer and Grace were promptly led to one of the village's ricepaper-walled, thatch-roofed houses that hadn't been destroyed by the hunters, and their guide pulled aside a rug to reveal a trapdoor, which was swung open. "Through here. It'll take you to an intersection. The left passage leads down into the inside of the volcano, which is an emergency escape that comes out st the bottom of the mountain, but the right one leads into the shrine's cellar. It'll be guarded, so be ready to be taken into custody and don't resist until your friends can convince the others that you aren't their enemy," she instructed them.

"Got it," Tyria nodded, jumping down into the tunnel. "Thanks for the assist," Boomer nodded graciously, following her, and Grace paused. "Thanks for everything, miss, um,"

For a moment, the qilin's red eyes flashed purple, and she winked. "Oh, just call me Quarla," the apparently-possessed qilin winked, before pushing the door closed behind Grace and rushing out of the building.

A moment later, a translucent shape shot out of the qilin's body, and she paused, looking around. "How did I get here? Strange,"

~P's E~

Pierce, Eve and Cor had been waiting in the antechamber of the shrine, while the guards conferred with the Divine Caladrius about their presence, when there was a sudden commotion and a side door swung open. Pierce was surprised to see Boomer, Tyria and Grace emerge, guarded by a quartet of angry qilins.

"Hi Pierce!" Grace eagerly waved.

"What is going on here?" asked the lone qilin who was keeping an eye on Pierce and Eve, and the leader of the four explained, "These three came up through the secret passage, ma'am!"

"They did?" she asked with a frown. "How did you find the passage?" she addressed the question to Tyria, who explained, "A friend of yours showed it to us after we freed the captives so we could meet up with our teammates here," and gestured to Pierce and Eve, who nodded.

"I see. Very strange, the passage is supposed to be kept secret no matter the situation," the lead qilin frowned, before scrutinising the threw newcomers' hearts. "However, it seems that they mean well, and are close with these two, so for the time being we will awaot the judgement of the -"

"Enter," A lilting voice resonated through the entire shrine from the adjoining chamber, pleasant but authoritative, and pitched so that there was no doubt in anyone's mind that it belonged to none other than the Divine Caladrius herself. "All of you,"

"That's our cue," Pierce recognised, rising. The qilins released the other Phoenixes, before joining in formation and sheparding the five humans, and Cor, into the chamber of the Caladrius.

As soon as the door swung open, Pierce gasped. Tyria inhaled in amazement, and Grace's mouth formed a tiny 'o'. Boomer smiled in amazement, and Eve . . Eve looked as though she'd just discovered the meaning of life.

The Caladrius was a massive bird, of stature so great that it seemed three people could stand on her head if not for the great feathery crest that adorned it, with feathers of purest white, a pale beak of unblemished ivory and two black lines on her head where her eyes should be. It took a moment for Pierce to realise that her eyes were closed. Her tailfeathers, easily ten feet in length, trailed behind her, and her neck was long and arched, like a swan's. Her wings were folded against her body, but even so, Pierce knew from observing other birds at smaller scales that, fully opened, they would surely be at least forty feet wide. The mighty demigod regarded them with a serene expression that Pierce recognised as an avian smile. "It warms my heart that you have come, wizards of Phoenix's Eye," the Caladrius spoke.

As one, the wizards, along with their qilin escort, bowed their heads. If asked, they couldn't explain why. It was simply the right thing to do in the presence of a being that was so obviously divine in nature.

"You flatter me, to act as though you were my servants when you have come here to grant me aid out of the goodness of your hearts," the Caladrius nodded serenely. As he raised his head once more, Pierce had to reflect that there probably wasn't anything the Divine Caladrius did that wasn't serene. Even so, he had to correct her on her mistake. "That's not quite the truth, uh," Pierce racked his brain for a suitable title, but his addressee intervened. "Caladrius is fine,"

"Caladrius," Pierce nodded. "See, the leader of those hunters is my father," he explained, looking down in shame. "And as his son, I must clean up the mess that he has brought to your mountain,"

"Is that so?" the demigod mused, before her smile returned. "You should not take his sins onto yourself," she gently reprimanded the Tamer. "The deeds of the father need not become the legacy of the son, a fact which I believe you are living proof of,"

Pierce nodded gratefully. "Thank you,"

"That said, I am grateful that you have come to aid us, and that you bring such prestigious company," the Caladrius spoke.

"Pres . . what?" Pierce blinked, casting a questioning glance at his guildmates. Boomer and Tyria simultaneously shrugged helplessly in response.

"I would speak with each of you privately. We ought to have the time, since the hunters will most likely not attempt another attack until sunrise," the Caladrius explained. Her lidded gaze focused on Eve. "Eve Tangelia, yes?"

"You . . remember me?" Eve blinked in amazement.

"Of course, dear child. I never forget people who I have healed," the Caladrius nodded. "Come," she beckoned. Obediently, the young wizard walked forwards, clutching her keyring, and stood before the great bird, who flapped down to the ground before her, and, opening her wings a little, enveloped her own head, along with Eve's entire body, in a bubble of privacy.

~P's E~

"How have you been?" the Caladrius gently asked.

"Fine, I guess,"

"It surprises me that you joined a wizarding guild. I had thought your family was quite rich," the demigod questioned, and Eve looked down. "We were," she trailed off. "One of daddy's competitors bought the company out from under us. We went into poverty, and . . and I knew I was being a burden on my parents, so I decided I needed to get by on my own,"

"I see," the Divine Caladrius nodded. "Tell me, do you regret being healed by me?"

"What?" Eve frowned, and the great bird clarified. "The curse I freed you from. It was not a malign curse, unlike most that I heal, and it is one of the few that I have kept over the years. I'm curious, do you think that your life might have been better, or different in any way, if I had not undone the transformation?"

"Uh . . maybe? I dunno," Eve looked uncertain. "But, well . . I don't regret the choices I've made in life. I'm sad that my parents aren't in the best situation, but they're getting by, and . . and I like being a Phoenix's Eye wizard, and I wouldn't trade it for all the money or success in the world. And . . I dunno if things might have been better if I was different, but things worked out pretty well for me as is, so it can't be that bad. I guess,"

The Caladrius nodded in understanding. "That's good. I'm glad that you have found your happiness," she smiled. "It was a pleasure to meet you again, Eve Tangelia,"

"And you, Caladrius," the wizard meekly nodded.

"Before you go, would you mind telling me the names of your friends? Unlike my qilin subjects, I have no magic that would tell me that,"

~P's E~

"Uh, hiya, Caladrius," Boomer uncertainly offered as he entered his audience with the demigod.

"Greetings, Boomer Arestrad," the Divine Caladrius returned with a faint chuckle. "In all the centuries for which I have subsided here on this mountain, I have never had someone greet me quite like that,"

"Well, hooray for individualism," Boomer shrugged. "So, uh, what do you want to talk to me about?"

Suddenly, the great bird's countenance somehow became more grave, in spite of not actually changing at all. "I feel that I must warn you, young wizard. I sense a darkness that haunts every step you take, and if you are imprudent, it may consume you,"

"Thanks for the advice, but I've already faced my demons," Boomer shook his head. "I've moved on from that part of my life,"

"You may believe that, but all the same, you must be wary. For I fear that your actions may have had repercussions that you can even now only guess at," the Caladrius warned him.

"What are you, psychic?" Boomer frowned.

"Unfortunately, not. However, all divine beings have a degree of clairvoyance. I cannot force you to accept my advice, but I fear that not even sound is fast enough to outrun a past determined to catch up with you,"

Boomer's frown deepened, and he folded his arms. "Well, thanks for the advice, but I've gotta disappoint you. Regykraeon's dead and no one outside of Phoenix's Eye even knows what happened to Ghoulia six years ago. The past is the past. There's no sense in digging up the dead,"

"Believe what you will," the Caladrius sighed, parting her wings to allow him an exit. "Could you send in your young friend? The girl whose scent is like that of a dragon,"

"You got it, D-C," Boomer nodded, and ducked out before the Caladrius could process what he'd said.

"I can't say that I like him much," the demigod mused with a faint air of irritation.

~P's E~

"Hi, miss big shiny bird!" Grace eagerly waved.

The Caladrius twitched her eyelids in an approximation of a blink, and reflected that the wizards of Phoenix's Eye were certainly _memorable_ , if nothing else.

"I'm sorry, but I can't say Callie . . Cala-dry . . yeah," the young Dragon Slayer shrugged.

"Fair enough," The demigod reminded herself that Grace was the youngest member of the group she was presented with, and decided she deserved to be cut some slack. "I must say that I have never before seen a being with a condition like yours,"

"Uh . . is that good?" Grace asked, cocking her head.

"It depends on for what purpose you use the powers you have been gifted with," the Caladrius explained. "However, the choices you have made seem to be good ones. To be perfectly honest, I actually don't have much to say to you. Simply do not let your guard down, and do not allow yourself to grow complacent. Phoenix's Eye is a good place for you to be, and your current situation is one that I believe will make you happy. Do not forget that,"

"Don't worry. Phoenix's Eye is my family. I'm never gonna leave my family!" Grace reassured her.

"Good," the Divine Caladrius smiled at her. "Could you ask your brother to come in here? I feel I must talk to him next,"

~P's E~

"It is an honour, Caladrius," Pierce nodded respectfully as he entered.

"One that is all mine, no doubt," the demigod smiled back at him through her pale beak. "You have been seeking a more active role in combat of late, I see,"

"Uh, yes," Pierce wasn't expecting this line of discussion. He'd expected to hear something about his father.

"Are you sure that is wise?"

"Well," The Tamer paused, considering this. "I just feel useless in fights. What good is the guy who stands back and tells other people to fight?"

"That is a good question, is it not?" the demigod cast him an indulgent look through closed eyelids. "What good is the person who commands his teammates, sees the things that they can't and commands them to react accordingly, organises and executes the group strategies and holds the team together?"

"I . . huh. You might be right there," Pierce nodded, considering this.

"Good. I have no doubt that you are a capable fighter, Pierce Blastreyne. But ask yourself this; does your team need another fighter? Or does it need a leader?"

"I think I understand. Thank you, Caladrius," Pierce nodded gratefully.

"Good," the Divine Caladrius nodded. "But I must also tell you, being leader of your group means you must be a shoulder for your friends to lean on when they need you. And they will need you, Pierce. Make no mistake about that,"

"Don't worry," Pierce nodded. "I never turn down a friend in need,"

"I know that you won't," the Caladrius nodded with a smile. "Could you send in your last friend? Tyria?"

~P's E~

Being in the presence of the Divine Caladrius made Tyria feel . . strange. An odd sensation akin to goosebumps had overcome her as son as she entered the room, and here, with the demigod's undivided attention, the sensation only increased.

"You seem ill at ease," the Caladrius observed.

"Yeah, kinda, I guess. Just that I've been feeling weird," Tyria admitted, rubbing the back of her hand.

"Interesting," the Caladrius nodded. "Has anything strange been happening with you recently?"

Tyria avoided the demigod's eyeless gaze. She'd been keeping her secrets for so long that it didn't feel right talking about it . .

"My duty in life is to relieve people of what ails them," the white bird reminded her. "Sometimes, that means no more than listening to the things that can be said to no one else. I assure you, I will keep your secrets,"

And, Tyria didn't know why, but she believed it. She trusted the Caladrius, even though she couldn't explain why if asked. So she spilt. She told her everything; about her hunger for technology, about her confused feelings for Pierce, about her mixed loyalties towards her guild and her college, she offloaded all of the things that she'd been keeping bottled up in one go. And the Caladrius listened to it all without judgement or criticism.

"Did it occur to you, that your heart doesn't have to belong in one place?" the demigod asked after she'd finished.

"Huh?"

"Why do you have to regard Fiore _or_ Electria as your home? Why not both?" she pressed.

At this, realisation dawned. "You're right. Why can't I have two homes?" Tyria nodded. Why hadn't she thought of that? It seemed so obvious in hindsight.

"And Pierce is someone you care for deeply, and he feels the same. Is there a reason that the two of you should not see if your feelings run deeper? It won't ruin your friendship, no matter how you may fear that," the Caladrius continued.

"Yeah . . I guess it won't," Tyria nodded, looking up at the bird, impressed. "You're really good at this,"

"It is my job," the demigod nodded.

"But . . what about my eating habits?"

"Ah. Yes, I suppose this is where things get more complicated," the Caladrius admitted.

~P's E~

As Tyria returned to the group, Pierce noted the shell-shocked expression on her face. "What did you talk about?" he asked with raised eyebrows.

"Stuff that I need time to think about," Tyria admitted, and Pierce nodded, accepting this. "Take all the time you need,"

"The sun will rise soon," the Caladrius spoke to all of them once more. "I have no doubt that the hunters will renew their assault at daybreak and try again to capture me. We cannot allow this to happen,"

"Of course not," Pierce nodded, and the rest of the group agreed, but the demigod shook her head. "No, you don't understand. There are two reasons that I cannot leave this mountain and cannot risk capture. The first is that Jarod Blastreyne and his hunters don't completely understand the nature of my powers,"

"The nature?" Tyria repeated, raising an eyebrow.

"I cannot, as you all no doubt believe, heal any ailment. Instead, I have the ability to take all that which ails people and draw it out of their body and into my own. This is why I live here, atop a volcano. I can cast the afflictions I take into myself down into the volcano where they burn until nothing remains. If the hunters take me from this place, I will have no such recourse, and the first mortal wound or deadly sickness I cure will kill me as surely as it would have the man I heal,"

"Oh," Eve's eyes widened. "So, when you said you kept my curse,"

"Indeed. My powers define an 'ailment' as anything that the person I am curing considers to have a negative effect on their life. Sometimes I happen upon one which is beneficial, and only the bearer's perspective causes them to see it as a burden. Your curse was one such ailment, and I have kept it as part of my collection of personal favourites,"

"I get it," Eve nodded, amazed.

"You mentioned two reasons?" Boomer pressed.

"Yes, of course," the Caladrius nodded. "The second is that Mount Zheng is not, as most of the world believes, a dormant volcano," She paused for a second to let that sink in, and watched as the wizards' eyes slowly widened in understanding.

"Wait, so you're saying -"

"My presence here is the only thing that prevents the volcano from erupting. If I leave the mountain for too long, the volcano within will erupt, and the resulting explosion will obliterate a large part of northern Ishgar,"

"Well, that's not so bad. I've never even heard of Ishgar, so it must be a really little place that -" Grace paused at the looks everyone else was giving her. "What?"

"Grace. Ishgar is what they used to call Fiore before King Toma E. Fiore took over," Tyria explained. "By 'obliterate northern Ishgar', she means 'obliterate northern Fiore',"

"Oh," Grace gulped. "That's bad,"

"Yeah," Pierce nodded. "We can't let that happen,"

"Thank you," the Caladrius nodded. "It's almost morning. You all should go outside and be ready to defend the shrine,"

A/N

A/N

Now, remember everyone, his is your last chance to submit questions for the Q/A next week!

Also, minor thing people might not have noticed; there was a hint about the true nature of the Caladrius' powers during Eve's flashback a few chapters ago. Before healing her, the Caladrius' feathers were pure white, and afterwards they were speckled brown, the colour Eve's were while she was cursed. Did anyone notice? Peace!


	50. Questions and Answers

Chapter 50: Questions and Answers

"Morning," Pierce greeted Sarah as he walked into the guild hall, before pausing. "What the he -" He frantically cut himself off, recalling his resolution not to swear around Grace, and corrected himself. "E-eck is that?"

The brunette barmaid was carting a whole wheelbarrow of letters through the guild hall, which she eventually dumped in the centre of the hall, where Alice had cleared a space. "Fan mail. We've gotten a lot recently for some reason," she explained.

"Whoa . . how much of that is for me?" Pierce asked, trying not to look too excited. He knew that stories of him and his team's actions in Ghoulia, and their role in defeating the Oracion Och, had resulted in them becoming minor celebrities, but he'd never expected that that would mean any more than the occasional person in the street recognising him from a photo in Sorcerer Weekly, or perhaps being asked for an autograph now and then. Not . . _this_.

"I'm not sure," Sarah answered, but blinked as the pile rustled.

Suddenly, a petite woman with a golden-blonde ponytail, half-moon purple glasses that matched her purple undershirt and stockings, and a bright red cardigan and skirt with ruby slippers sat up from the pile, clutching a pencil and a notebook. "Hi!" Penny Prince beamed.

Sarah shrieked, backing away.

"Hey, it's that reporter girl who has a crush on Boomer," Pierce observed, apparently unbothered by this turn of events. "I do not!" Penny shrieked as Boomer gasped, "Wait, what?"

"Where the hell did you come from?" Tyria demanded from Team Pierce's table, recognising the eccentric reporter that had interviewed her and her friends after their fight with the Oracion Och.

"What on earth are you doing here?" Ariel snorted, folding her arms with an irritated look.

"Were you hiding in our mail this whole time?" Sarah demanded, frowning.

"Only for a bit of it," Penny defended herself. "And I _might_ have put out a call in Sorcerer Weekly for all your fans to send out questions for you all to answer," she added, before raising a finger and winking. "Spoiler alert, I totally did!"

"So this is a glorified PR stunt," Pierce ascertained. Penny meant well . . for a given definition of the term . . but she was certainly eccentric.

"Well, that's nothing new," Boomer shrugged. "We do those all the time,"

"Don't remind me," Hare groaned. "I wasn't even _in_ your last 'music video'," she glared at the Sound Wizard.

"We were focusing on Tyria," Boomer pointed out in rebuttal.

"Whatever,"

"So, what I'm hearing is, our fans have sent us all a bunch of questions they want us to answer, and you'll record the answers and publish them in Sorcerer Weekly, right?" Pierce asked Penny, who nodded and smirked, tossing him a thumbs-up. "You got it in one!"

"Alright," Sarah shrugged, beckoning to Alice. "We might as well hand these out,"

"If nothing else, it'll kill an afternoon," Pierce shrugged as he received the first letter. Penny looked at him and produced a pink Lacrima, which she immediately activated to record every answer.

"We've heard the stories behind how you've met some of your beasts, but not all. Could you explain the rest?" the Tamer read. "Okay . . which ones specifically do they want me to tell?" he asked Penny, who briefly checked her notes. "It has previously been explained in detail how you met Raya, Inky and Victoria, and it has been witnessed how you met Brakodidon and Cubelios. That leaves Kit, Knox and Crystal,"

"Oh. Well, there's not much to tell there. Master Feng referred Crystal to me when I was a novice because she was looking for adventure, and we sort of struck up a mutual relationship. I get the assistance in fights, and she gets to be an adrenaline junkie," Pierce explained. "It's a similar story with Knox, except when he came to me, he'd only recently been turned into a werewolf and wanted to find something meaningful he could do with his life in his new condition. Again, he was referred to me," Pierce explained.

"And Kit?" Penny questioned.

"He'd been haunting the basement of my house for years before I bought it and driving the property value down. Which was good, because it meant I could buy it dirt-cheap," Pierce explained with a grin. "Once I had, I tamed him, basically just so that I could sleep at night. We had a rocky relationship at first, but now we're best buddies,"

"That's one way to describe it," Kit rolled his eyes.

"Okay then," Penny nodded.

The next question was for Hare, and she read, "How come Hare's such a jerk?"

"Wait, is that a question _for_ Hare, or a question _about_ Hare? Because she might be biased," Boomer pointed out.

"I'm not a jerk," Hare huffily retorted.

"See? Bias,"

"Is not,"

"I'll field this one," Master Feng declared, striding into the main part of the guild hall from the stairs. "She's a jerk because **[SPOILERS]** ,"

" **[SPOILERS]**? Seriously?" Penny looked dejected.

"Oh, like you know anything," Hare huffed.

Feng just smiled wisely and didn't mention her telepathy magic.

"Great," Penny groaned, tossing a few others around.

Grace tore one open eagerly, before reading it and slumping, disappointed. "What's it like being a Dragon Slayer?" she read it again, aloud, and sighed. "People only care about my powers,"

"That's not true," Tyria hastened to reassure her. "You're just having bad luck with the questions. I'm sure there are some about you as a person," she cast an annoyed look at Penny, who had the decency to look sheepish, " _right?_ "

"Probably," the reporter obligingly nodded.

"Oh - okay," Grace cheered up, before looking at the Lacrima. "Well, I don't remember _not_ being a Dragon Slayer, so I'm not sure how to compare it. I get hungrier faster and eat more than most people, though - Sarph says it's something to do with metal bola sims,"

"Metabolism. Hers is faster than most people because she needs more energy," Sarph clarified.

"And you get a lot of annoying questions about your powers," her tone had definitely turned sulky at this point. "Maybe I am one of the most powerful wizards in Fiore. Maybe I could be a Wizard Saint in twenty years or something. But it doesn't have to be the first thing anyone ever talks to me about!" she snapped, gritting her fangs in an uncharacteristic show of violence, before a thought struck her, and she fingered her pronounced, almost vampiric canines. "I guess I have these, too," she mused.

The young girl took a deep breath, before continuing, "And, sometimes, I just feel more . . dragon-y. Like I'm not all human, or . . maybe not human at all, you know what I mean?"

"Yeah, I think I do," Tyria quietly muttered, before realising her slip. "Uh - in a metaphorical sense, of course,"

"Tyria, heads up! The next one's for you!" Penny called, and, surprised, she snatched an envelope out of the air. Within seconds, it was open and she pulled the question out. "Tyria, what is your favorite - eep!"

The question read; 'Tyria, what is your favorite consumable metal?'

"How do people even _know_ about that?" she squeaked.

"That doesn't matter. Everyone's dying to know!" The Electrian looke duo and squealed; Penny was suddenly inches away, shoving the lacrima in her face.

"Well, I guess I have to answer now . . Copper's good for digestion, but kind of plain. I think the best kind of technology I've ever eaten was actually the broken parts of the Alternative Weapons System. I think it was an alloy of titanium and steel; problem is, I don't know where to get any more. I should have packed a doggy bag while I was in space," she sighed, speaking in a whisper. "I just hope none of my friends read the article,"

"Good things to hear!" Penny chirped, dashing back to the pile and pulling out another letter. "Oh, this one's for Sensho! Kinda surprising, since he's barely appeared in the story to date, but okay,"

"What story?" Sensho, who wore a white robe that hung around his lithe frame, with a straw hat atop his head, and a mane of spiky silver hair hanging from under it. Blue eyes twinkled from beneath his hat, and a belt hung around his waist with several hooks attached, bearing a teapot and several cups.

"That," Penny raised a finger, "not to put too fine a point on it, is a _long_ story. Catch!" she commanded, throwing the Tea Wizard a letter. Carefully, he prized it open and read, "What's the limit that you can currently go with your Tea magic and how do you feel about using it to help others?"

"Alright," Sensho looked pleased at the attention. "Tea Magic is primarily a support magic, in that it can have a range of beneficial effects. Most of these are in the name," he explained, pulling a small satchel of tea grains from a pocket. "Take my Duplici-Tea for example. Anyone who drinks this will suddenly, for a short period of time, find themselves to be an accomplished liar capable of fooling all but the most perspicacious of individuals. My Tea Magic also has limited healing properties, though that isn't saying much. And it can be liable to scald," he admitted. "It's not very helpful in combat, though I do have a few tricks up my sleeve,"

"I wonder what those entail?" Sarph mused. It wasn't as though he could look it up on his Archive - Sensho didn't like to brag and so would probably never mention it, but he had actually created Tea Magic. (By accident, but even so.) And, so far as Sarph knew, he was the only practitioner of it in the entire world.

"I certainly never hesitate to help others with it," Sensho finished, disregarding the S-Class' internal monologue.

"Alright," the Sorcerer Weekly reporter nodded, fishing out another. "Heads up, Pierce,"

Pierce caught his first enveloped question, tore it open - and blanched.

 _'_ _Will you fess up to Tyria soon?'_

"Everyone wants to know," Penny hissed, and Pierce sprang out of his chair in shock. "Where did you come from?"

"Answer the question," Penny commanded, and Pierce sighed, whispering to ensure he wasn't overheard. "Probably not. I like her, sure, but I don't want to compromise what I have with her because I can't control my hormones. Her friendship's too important to me to risk alienating like that just because I can't get a grip on my hormones. If something happens and things go further than they already have, then I'll go for it. But I'm not taking the chance of jeopardising what I have with her when she probably doesn't feel the same way anyway,"

The reporter looked upset, and groaned. "You're boring," she muttered to herself, returning to the pile and fishing out another couple of letters. "Hare, another one for you," she huffily tossed it over.

The Speed wizard, still smarting from the last question addressed to her, cocked an eyebrow as she read, "Why did seeing Cor make you bolt?"

"Good question," Pierce hummed. "Why did that happen?"

Hare hummed, trying to make up her mind on what to say.

"More **[SPOILERS]**?" Penny asked, disappointed.

"I don't think so. Simply put, I've had bad experiences with qilin in the past. And I had thought that I had put it behind me," she muttered darkly.

"Well, that's brilliant. You can play up the mystery angle all you want, but it'll only hold the public's interest for so long," the Sorcerer Weekly journalist huffed. "Alright, here's one for Eve," she added, tossing the next envelope to the brunette in question.

"What's up with your weird key?" Eve read, raising an eyebrow. "Weird key?" she parroted.

"I think he means your Crystal Key," Penny helpfully added.

"Yeah, that one is weird," Tyria mused.

"This?" Eve held up Venus' key, made of blue crystal with a pink tinge, a love heart on the tip and a sculpted rose at the head. "It's one of the Celestial Deity Keys, which are a set similar to the Zodiac Keys and of equal strength. Uh . . there's a lot of important stuff, but I don't really remember . ."

"I can handle that," Sarph volunteered. "The Zodiac Keys are known to be a set of specifically twelve or thirteen, depending on whether you believe those rumours about the Zodiac Spirit Ophiuchus or not," From the tone of his voice, it was quite clear he didn't. "However, the Deity Keys are the stuff of legends, and no one's ever seen all of them together. This is important because it isn't actually known _how many_ Deity Keys there are," he clarified, before manifesting an Archive screen that displayed five Crystal Keys.

"It's been confirmed that there are at least five. In addition to the Venus Key Eve owns, Princess Hisui of our own royal family is known to own one, the Neptune Key. Also, the Dark Wizard Mordonna of the Kairos End Dark Guild has been recorded owning and using two of them, the Mars Key and the Pluto Key. Historically, there is also documented proof of a Jupiter Key, but it's been lost to the ages and no one knows its current location," he explained.

"But aren't there at least two more?" Artorias piped up, and Penny, who had been about to say the same thing, tweaked her purple half-moon glasses so that they caught the light and shot him a _look_. A _look_ which he ignored.

Sarph frowned, entering a few more commands and bringing up two blurry images of two more crystal keys. "That is a subject of much debate. However, there is unproven speculation that, in addition to the five known keys, there is also a Saturn Key and a Uranus Key. But the existence of those two is about as likely as that of the Ophiuchus Zodiac Key,"

"But what about the -" Penny started, but a glare from the knight silenced her. "If you're going to bring up the Gaia Key, you can kiss any more questions from me goodbye!" he threatened, severely fed up with the conjecture.

"What's the Gaia Key?" Grace piped up with a smile that was a little _too_ innocent.

Sarph groaned. "The Gaia Key is to the Celestial Deities as Ophiuchus is to the Zodiac. A mythical key supposedly made of diamond which is so heavily steeped in legend that, frankly, I'd bet my sword that it's a hoax," he declared, patting Solamion on his back.

Everyone in the guild let out a small gasp. Sarph loved his sword dearly, he had to be _more_ than certain that the Gaia Key was nonexistent to say something like that.

"Anyway," Penny broke the silence, and pulled another envelope out of the pile. "Got another one for Pierce here," she threw over the envelope.

Somewhat hesitantly, considering the previous question, the Tamer took the envelope and opened it. He breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing it was nothing to do with his lacklustre love life, and read it aloud. "How long until Pierce realises Cubelios is cursed?" He blinked, and started turning the paper left and right, wondering if there was some kind of hidden message. "I'm not sure I understand the question?"

"The guy wants to know when you're going to figure out that Cubelios is cursed. Though right now might be the answer," the reporter explained.

"No, I . . already knew that Cubelios is cursed," Pierce clarified.

"Wait, what?"

"When I first Tamed her after I fought Erik, one of the first things I did was check for abuse, both physical and magical. She proved to be in peak physical condition, but had a good couple of dozen curses and enchantments overlaid on her. I'm not a skilled enough enchanter to figure out what any of them except the one 'on top', the most recent one, do - which gives her the ability to breath poison gas. I expect Brain did that one so that she could better work with Erik," Pierce briefly explained. "As for all the other spells, I haven't the foggiest what they do to her,"

"But . . shouldn't you . ." Penny spluttered. "Try to remove them?"

Pierce shrugged. "Why should I? Cubelios is happy how she is. _Maybe_ , if I tried to tamper with or get rid of the magic on her, it would make things better for her. But it's far more likely to make things worse. Her body's not fragile, all of her senses work fine, she's emotionally stable and intelligent. She's not even infertile, which really does amaze me. Any or all of those things could change if I tried tampering with the magics on her. I could do a lot more harm than good,"

"I see," Penny considered this.

"Of course, if something changes, say if the spells unravelled and her condition began to deteriorate, then of course I'd see what I could do. If that meant breaking the curses on her, then so be it. But until that happens, it's just safer to leave her as she currently is," the Tamer explained, reclining in his chair.

"Alright," the golden-blond reporter nodded, taking out another letter. "Oh, this is odd, kind of an open question for;" she squinted. "Pierce, Tyria, Grace, Fleur, Alice and . . Cubelios?"

Pierce had a funny feeling he knew where this was going. "Alright," he Requipped his flute and quickly summoned Cubelios, who appeared nearby, casting the Tamer an inquisitive glance.

"Since some members of the guild chose to bet on Pierce forming a harem," Penny began.

"Oh, brother," Pierce sighed.

"Will it happen, and, of the guild's girls, do they like that idea?"

Pierce gulped.

Tyria blanched.

Fleur choked.

Grace squeaked.

Alice blinked in bewilderment.

Cubelios, not understanding the question, hissed inquisitively.

"Uh . . well, I can't say I've ever really entertained the notion," Pierce muttered, a faint blush on his cheeks.

Tyria seemed at a loss for words.

"Oh, eew eew eew! Pierce is, like, my brother! I'd never kiss him or anything like that!" Grace shouted.

Alice wrinkled her nose, and shook her head. "I've said it before and I'll say it again. I'm not getting involved with anyone except Lync,"

Meanwhile, Fleur had been furiously scribbling something down in her notebook, and tore the page out, before handing it to Totomaru to read. "My love life is . . I'm not saying _that word_ in front of Grace," he snorted at Fleur, who huffed. "Enough as it is. I'm not getting Pierce entangled in it,"

"Really? You're all boring," Penny snapped, before frantically looking at Cubelios. "Cubelios, anything to add?"

The snake hissed in confusion.

"Wow, she's _desperate_ for a scoop," Boomer observed.

"How could you say something like - fine, whatever! Next question!" Penny snapped, pulling out another envelope. "Oh, this is for . . The Divine Caladrius herself. I'll have to deliver that later," she resolved, putting it back and taking another. "Now, this one is for Grace," she tossed the envelope to the young Dragon.

"Ooh, yay!" Grace grinned, taking the envelope and opening it. "Do you think about boys at all? If so, what is your type?"

She blinked. "Uh . . well, at least it's not about my magic," she sweat-dropped.

"You know, I think that this question was sent in by the same person as that last one about Pierce's harem," Penny helpfully added.

"Which doesn't exist!" Pierce hollered.

"Okay, um . . never really considered that," the Dragon Slayer murmured. "I guess . . Cor's kinda cute, for a beast, though that could just be my dragon instincts talking . . I dunno," she shrugged.

"Qilins and dragons aren't that dissimilar, genetically speaking," Sarph pointed out.

"I still wanna date a human, though. Someday," Grace retorted, folding her arms in irritation.

"Good to hear," Penny grinned, reaching for another envelope. She pulled it out, read it, and blinked. "Oh, that's that one for the Caladrius again," she muttered, reaching for another, and frowned when there was nothing left to grab.

"Is that it?" she demanded, glaring at the empty wheelbarrow. "Is tht seriously all the questions we got?"

"Yeah, what gives? There weren't any for me!" Boomer protested.

"Or me," Artorias raised a disgruntled eyebrow.

"And I didn't get a single question about proper sword care. You'd think these people would have their priorities straight," Sarph huffed, folding his arms.

"Uh, yeah," the reporter half-heartedly nodded, sighing. "I guess I have enough material to work with for the editorial . . oh well. Maybe we'll get more in another fifty chapters, eh?" she grinned, picking herself up and grabbing the wheelbarrow's handles.

"Fifty what?" Pierce blinked.

"Nothing! Bye-ee!" Penny waved, high-tailing it out of the building.

Sarah watched her go, looking upset. "But that was _my_ wheelbarrow," she muttered.

"Hey, it could have been worse," Ariel reassured her, wrapping a consoling arm around Sarah, who looked up questioningly. "What do you mean by that?"

"You could be one of those poor lovesick fools," the water witch grinned, gesturing at . . basically everyone in the guild.

"What does that mean?" Totomaru challenged, his fohawk twitching.

Ariel shot him a smile that was a little _too_ sincere. "That I feel very sorry for you!"

~P's E~

"Yoo-hoo?" Penny called, walking into the Divine Caladrius' room, in her shrine.

The great bird 'blinked', while keeping her eyes closed, in surprise. "Oh. Hello there. Is there an ailment that you wish me to cure?"

"Well, yes, but not with your magic," Penny shrugged, pulling a portable stool out of nowhere and settling down on it, before producing an envelope. "See, my name's Penny Prince, and I'm a reporter for Sorcerer Weekly. There's someone out there with a question for you and I need the answer so that I can publish my Q/A editorial on Phoenix's Eye,"

". . I see," the Caladrius nodded. "Go ahead,"

Penny was about to hand her the envelope, but paused, realising just in time that the Caladrius didn't have hands, and her claws, each being large enough to snatch up a small car, would see the envelope as a speck. Instead, she opened it and read it out herself; "What would happen if you were to give sumone - yes, that's how it's spelt - a few of your feathers? Would they have some retention of your healing abilities?"

The Caladrius hummed thoughtfully. "You know, I've never tried that," she murmured. "Given that I am a divine being, every fibre of my body is filled with divine energy. Therefore it stands to reason that my feathers, once removed, would retain some power. But my healing abilities are channeled through my eyes, my feathers have no part in it,"

"So . . ?" Penny asked.

"To be perfectly honest, I'm not certain what would happen. But I think that you've given me an idea," the Caladrius hummed in approval. "I'll make sure that your readers get an answer, as soon as I discover what it is,"

"Alright. Chapter 53 it is, then," the reporter grinned.

"Chapter . . pardon?"

"Nothing! Bye!" she waved, collapsing her folding stool and skipping out through the door way and out of sight.

Moments later, Pietro and Klaus, the qilin guards, rushed inside, claws bared and weapons at the ready. "Caladrius! We heard voices, did someone somehow get in here?"

"Yes," the demigod nodded. "There was a young woman who needed to ask me a question for some reason. I assumed you let her in?"

"No, Caladrius. We didn't see anything," the qilins responded.

"How strange," the Caladrius mused. "I wonder who, or what, she really was?"

A/N

 **A/N**

 **I really love having Penny Prince around. XD She's, like, my own personal in-universe emissary. #seriouswritershavePennys! XD**

 **Anyway. I hope you enjoyed the Q/A, and I am disappointed by how few questions I got. I wanted more, damnit. -.- Maybe next time.**

 **Peace!**


	51. The Parallax of Metal and Technology

Chapter 51: The Parallax of Metal and Technology

 **Double update again, to celebrate both fifty chapters and the one-year anniversary of the story! Make sure you didn't miss the Chapter 50 Q/A!**

 **A/N**

A/N

Jarod Blastreyne strode through town in the early morning sunlight, carefully avoiding the qilins milling around. He was sorely tempted to shoot every single one where they stood, but knew that doing so would be unprofitable. So, while he kept his finger on the trigger, he made the short trip between his caravan and Motormouth's without shooting anything.

With a flourish he swept away the debris jamming the caravan's doors shut and smashed the door open, finding the lights within dimmed and, in his bunk, Motormouth was still snoring like a freight train.

"Wake up!" Jarod commanded, leaning over the Metal Maker mage. Immediately, he man's eyes shot open, and Motormouth was shocked to find his guild master leaning over him. "Master! What are you doing in my caravan over my bed? I really don't think this is very proper wouldn't it be better for you to -"

"Shut up," Jarod commanded, and, gulping, Motormouth nodded, pulling himself out of bed as his master retreated

"Get up and come with me. The situation has escalated while you were snoozing. I'm going to need your skills," Jarod commanded.

"Really? What happened? Did some of the animals esca -" The death-glare Jarod cast him silenced the man at once, and Motormouth nodded. "Just tell me what to do sir,"

Beckoning, the head hunter left, and Motormouth hastily followed.

~P's E~

"Any idea what we're looking for?" Tyria asked, and Pierce shrugged. "I guess, just, anything, really. Keep in mind, though, the hunters will probably try a sneak attack. Be alert for the slightest detail being out of place,"

The five wizards were all standing on the front porch of the shrine, watching the village, alert for any attack.

"Hey, I think I see something," Grace observed, squinting. "There's someone coming towards us!"

"Who is it?" Pierce asked, and Boomer frowned. "Is it a hunter?"

Eve shivered, but did her best to keep herself controlled.

"Maybe? He doesn't look much like a hunter, though," Grace observed as the lone figure she was focusing on advanced up the gentle incline.

"Why not?" Tyria asked with a small smile. Grace's descriptions were hilarious and she always enjoyed hearing them.

"Well, for one thing he's wearing pyjamas," the young Dragon Slayer pointed out.

"What?" Pierce blinked, squinting. Sure enough, the man advancing on them, with his spiky black hair, pinched, triangular face and furrowed monobrow, was wearing only a set of grey pyjamas and a pair of boots, with a rifle strapped over his back. "The hell?"

"I'll go take this guy down. The rest of you keep an eye out," Tyria commanded, striding forwards. Pierce nodded. "Alright. Good luck,"

The tech wizard strode forwards, ready to meet the hunter. "Oi! What are you up to?" she demanded.

Motormouth didn't respond, simply continuing to walk towards the shrine.

"Hello?" Tyria waved, planting herself directly in front of him. But it was as though she were invisible; the hunter just walked around her.

The Electrian fumed as he walked straight past her. "Fine. TechType: Tectonics!" she declared, throwing a mechanised haymaker at Motormouth.

A steel barrier shot out of the ground to intercept her blow, as the man spun around and faced her, with a silver magic circle in his hands. His wild-looking visage gleamed at her.

"Can you just talk already?" Tyria irritably demanded as the shield retracted, and they faced each other for a moment.

"You . . want me to talk?" Motormouth blinked.

"Well, I don't like fighting in silence," Tyria pointed out, folding her arms as her spell shut off.

"Well that's amazing no one's ever wanted me to talk before sometimes people tell me that it's because I talk too much and they say that I can't ever shut up but that's just silly I mean I'm sure that I'd notice if I talked that much I mean I think it's really just that other people don't talk enough if you know what I mean besides don't we all just have lots and lots of words buried deep inside that we really want to say but can't for reasons that we don't really understand well I'm just good at letting all those words out but that's enough philosophy you're a guilder and I'm a hunter so I suppose it's inevitable that we fight actually now that I think about it didn't you just say something about that before because I'm totally down with that but first we should introduce myself I'm Motormouth head of resource management in Severed Tusk I make all the fun things like cages and guns with my Metal Maker magic speaking of which it looks like you use metal magic too but a kind that's a bit different to mine but that's still cool metal is metal no matter what form it takes if you get what I'm saying which by the confused and somewhat shocked look in your eyes I'm guessing you don't but that's alright we can work it out together after I've finished beating you up also while I'm on that subject I'm really sorry that I'll have to do that but it's master's orders and you can't go against your guild master you know . . ."

The Electrian blinked, incredulous, as Motormouth rambled on and on without any signs of slowing down. "I think I changed my mind. I don't want you to talk," she commented, but her words were lost in her opponent's babble.

". . . so I'll spare you the details of how I joined the guild because we are supposed to be fighting and I think that I might have delayed that too long as it is so let's get to it don't you agree and I can see that you do so I'll kick things off with my Metalmake: Spikes!" Tyria frantically dodged as a series of steel spikes erupted from the ground where she had been standing and glared at her opponent, who was still talking. ". . . it's a real shame that my attack didn't hit you but that's alright because that's only a fraction of my power and I still have plenty more to throw at you . . ."

"Okay, so this guy never, ever shuts up. Alright then," Tyria noted, preparing herself as he launched another attack, ". . . but either way I still have to hit you with my Metalmake: Ramrod and hopefully that will . . ." A large girder shot from the ground and smashed into Tyria's chest, knocking her backwards. ". . . that certainly got you good if I do say so myself so hopefully I can keep this up because I definitely feel like I can . . ."

On a sudden impulse, Motormouth remembered the fact that he was armed. With a flick, he pulled his gun out from the holster on his back and pointed it at Tyria. ". . . okay now let's see how you deal with this . ." Tyria almost felt like laughing at the gun; her attacks were bulletproof. "TechType: Machine Gun II!" With a few well-placed shots, she blasted the weapon out of the hunter's hands and sent it skidding away - and promptly got nailed in the face with a metal cannonball Motormouth had apparently thrown.

Tyria exhaled, trying to stay calm. She wasn't doing a very good job . . the Caladrius' words had helped, but she was still feeling antsy. She just wanted to hit him, hard . . so surely there was no harm in a bit of overkill. It would be frowned upon by most, but she didn't really care at present. "Gear Change!" she commanded, and her eyes lit up blue as her hair shifted into silver spikes with electricity playing through them. "Mark: Second!"

". . . can honestly say that I don't really know what that means but it looks pretty cool and I have to give you props for the appearance so by all means do your worst because I'm sure I can take it . . ."

Time for a classic, Tyria grinned. For years the Blitzkrieg had been her strongest attack, since, while she'd only gotten strong enough to use Mark III shortly after the Ghoulia incident, she'd had Mark II since before she left Electria. The Blitzkrieg had been her first really strong attack that she'd coded, and using it always felt like meeting an old friend. An old friend that kicked ass, mind. "TechType Mark II: Forty-Eight Peg Gear Blitzkrieg!" she invoked, and the familiar massive gears appeared on her arms, driving her forwards to launch a biting attack at Motormouth.

". . . oh hey that's a really cool attack you know I actually have one just like it how about I show it to you Metalmake: Roller let's see how you deal with this . . ." A massive steamroller wheel appeared Motormouth's hands and he forced it forwards as it spun, carrying him with it to meet Tyria head-on. The two attacks collided, grinding against one another for a moment and kicking up orange sparks where they met, before both eventually knocked each other away, sending the two wizards flying a few feet apart.

Tyria panted. "No one's ever done that before," she commented. Never before had someone countered her using a similar attack with equal strength in order to cancel the attacks out. It was . . . actually rather clever. Too circumstantial to use regularly, but definitely a strategy to remember.

". . . really have to say that I think that went rather well but I can't help but notice that I'm now really close to the shrine which was my objective all along and you're all the way over there so it's been fun fighting you but I really have to get back to the task at hand so terribly sorry about that . . ." Tyria, who had been mostly tuning out the constant fountain of words Motormouth poured out, paused, hearing this. "Wait, what?" she demanded, noticing too late that the hunter had entered the pillar-supported awning around the shrine and was standing directly in front of the thick marble wall that was the only thing between him and the Divine Caladrius herself. The other Phoenixes were all around the sides and back of the temple, keeping watch for any other attacks.

"Metalmake!" Motormouth clasped his hands together, before spreading palms wide, and a symmetrical spiderweb of metal spread across the wall in front of him. "Super-Destructive TNT-Drill-Thingy!"

"Well, that's one way to name an attack," the Electrian muttered as she recovered, preparing to retaliate in order to distract Motormouth from his spell, but she underestimated his speed and the efficiency of the hunters' set-up. In a massive flash, the wall exploded, reduced to dust in an instant, and in the same second, long ropes woven from threads of steel arced out of the village, where Tyria only now noticed Jarod Blastreyne (not that she recognised him) directing a group of underlings. For a second she caught sight of the Divine Caladrius looking startled at the destruction of her back wall, but then the metal ropes shot over her head and through the gap, immediately winding around her and binding her wings to her sides, and then the restraints sparked with electricity, immediately shocking the demigod into unconsciousness.

A vein in her neck pulsed, and Tyria fumed, determined not to let the sacred bird be captured. "Pierce! Everyone! Help! TechType, um, oh! TechType Mark II: Electrostatic Blade Dance!" she invoked, allowing the sharpened metal sears to manifest on her arms as her feet shifted into rollerblades. The sharp ends of the spears were her only sharp attack; she usually preferred to bludgeon or shoot at things. Situations like this, where she had to cut something, usually didn't come up . . even so, she resolved to code a TechType: Chainsaw when she next had some free time.

Ejecting a spear into each of her hands, she started using them as melee weapons to cut at the ropes binding the unconscious Caladrius, even as they started to retract, dragging the demigod out of her shrine, and . . halting as she got caught between the pillars that held up the external sections of the roof.

". . no no no I won't let you interfere with our ultimate capture plans so have a taste of my Metalmake: Ramrod again it's really gonna knock you off your feet . . ." The same steel pillar appeared and knocked Tyria away from the ropes, causing her spears to fly out of her hands. As she picked herself up out of the dirt, feeling a bruise start to swell on her stomach, she noticed that Motormouth was pounding at the pillar between the two ropes reeling the Divine Caladrius in. She struggled to her feet, and, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed two things; firstly, that Motormouth had successfully destroyed the pillar, allowing the hunters at the bottom of the hill to continue dragging the demigod towards them once more, and secondly; that Pierce and Eve were rushing around the side of the shrine to back her up.

Tyria glared at Motormouth, who seemed to be doing some kind of victory dance, and decided that it was time to pull some stops out. "Gear Change: Mark Third!" she commanded, and intricate black gear tattoos ran down her arms and legs as her gear wings manifested out of condensed ethernano. With a few commands to the HUD in her vision, she spread her wings wide and charged them, building pulses of blue energy in seconds, before commanding; "TechType Mark III: Redacted Variable Hyperlaser!" A massive blue laser arced from the focal point of each individual gear's blast, and the resulting blast of energy slammed straight into Motormouth's back, sending him flying away into one of the surviving parts of the shrine, immediately knocking him out.

But the damage had been done; the unconscious Caladrius was being dragged towards the waiting gang of hunters, who had already prepared a massive cage on wheels attached to the back of Jarod Blastreyne's caravan, which in turn was still rigged to the large, beetle-like monster. Setting her jaw, Tyria was about to rush and help -

And then a stabbing pain shot through her leg.

She collapsed, wings folding and disappearing, and she spotted her leg, which was leaking blood. Dimly, Tyria realised that she had been shot. "And to think I was so dismissive of that other guy's gun," she exhaled with a faint chuckle.

~P's E~

Eve stopped dead when she heard the gunshot ring out. She saw a fat man in overalls wielding a rifle standing a few feet away from Tyria, who had just collapsed, and . . she couldn't control it. Her body just felt like it froze out of sheer panic. She wanted to help, but didn't . . . couldn't . . . there was nothing she could do.

~P's E~

Pierce had been rushing towards the Divine Caladrius to help, but the noise of the gun caught his attention. He cast a glance over - and gulped.

Kroeber was advancing on Tyria with his gun. He was too far away and he wouldn't be able to reach her and his meagre ranged arsenal would barely slow the hunter down! A light of panic appeared in his blue eyes, knowing there was nothing he could do to stop Tyria from being killed - and a glint on the ground caught his attention.

Motormouth's gun, the one that he had dropped during his fight. It was lying right at his feet.

 _~P's E~_

 _He would never forget the way the blizzardvern fell to the ground in an undignified heap, blood spurting from a hole in her neck, when his father shot her out of the sky._

 _~P's E~_

 _He tried to slow his breathing, attempting to hold the barrel of the gun steady, pointed as it was at the throat of the adolescent basilisk. But the enormity of what he was doing was inescapable, it swallowed his senses, wreaking havoc on his nerves._

 _He stepped back. "I can't do it,"_

 _~P's E~_

 _He braced the gun over his knee in the broken-open chimera pen and snapped it in two, and in that moment, promised himself that never again would he wield a weapon like that._

 _~P's E~_

And, seeing Tyria about to die, in that moment it was all swept away. Setting his gaze firmly, he snatched up the discarded rifle, and, within the space of a second, sighted along the barrel and fired.

Tyria flinched, as the hunter crouching over her, about to bury a bullet in her skull, suddenly span away and collapsed, blood erupting from a hole in his chest.

Motormouth's rifle fell out of Pierce's shaking hands, and he pressed them to his chest, holding in shivers. The way that the gun had kicked in his hands . . he never wanted to feel that again.

Suddenly, Grace, emerging from a hole in reality, was with him. "Pierce?" she asked, patting his arm.

"Yeah?" Doing his best to swallow his emotions and focus on the situation at hand, the Tamer focused on his adoptive sister, and Grace pointed. "They're getting away with the Caladrius,"

Pierce looked up, and saw that Jarod, with the rag-tag leftovers of his operation that hadn't already been captured or worse, had finished loading the Divine Caladrius into the wheeled cage and was preparing to make his escape, pointed in the direction where they had been told a passage down the mountain existed.

"Oh, hell no," Pierce growled, and Requipped his flute.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **Ooh yeah. For the record, that last scene? Where Pierce uses a gun to rescue Tyria? . . . I HAVE BEEN PLANNING THAT SCENE FOR FORTY CHAPTERS. XD**

 **And every moment of his brief flashbacks was taken from Chapter 11, BTW, so if you need a reminder, go back there.**

 **Also, some of you might be wondering why Tyria didn't just eat Motormouth's attacks. Well, there are two reasons for that; firstly, Tyria can eat technology. Not metal. If Motormouth's attacks were refined and complex enough to count as tech, she could, but most of them aren't. And secondly, she's still trying to keep it secret. If she'd eaten the attacks, someone might have seen.**

 **Anyway. Next chapter; the long-awaited final showdown between Pierce and his father! Peace!**


	52. Son of a Gun

Chapter 52: Son of a Gun

 **So sorry about the late update, everyone, something went wrong with the documenr submitter. And, considering that I haven't seen anyone else update any stories in the last 36 hours, I'm guessing I'm not the only one. However, I have discovered a workaround; to post, just overwrite an existing document you have stored with the new chapter content, and save. Thought anyone who was having the same problem would want to know. Anyway, on with the story!**

 _ **Previously, on The Guild Next Door . . .**_

 _Tyria flinched, as the hunter crouching over her, about to bury a bullet in her skull, suddenly span away and collapsed, blood erupting from a hole in his chest. Motormouth's rifle fell out of Pierce's shaking hands._

 _Doing his best to swallow his emotions and focus on the situation at hand, the Tamer focused on his adoptive sister, and Grace pointed. "They're getting away with the Caladrius,"_

 _"Oh, hell no," Pierce growled, and Requipped his flute._

 _~P's E~_

Raya screeched at the top of her lungs as she rose into the air, Pierce and Grace clinging onto her back. Beneath them, the hunters finished securing the unconscious Divine Caladrius to the cage and all rapidly piled into Jarod Blastreyne's caravan as the Guild Master of Severed Tusk himself took his seat on a raised chair at the head of the caravan, before producing a whip and using it to strike the giant beetle he was using as a beast of burden. With a pained screech, the insect scrambled forwards, rapidly accelerating as it dragged its cargo towards the forest surrounding Qilin Village.

"Oh, no you don't! Solar Blast, Raya!" Pierce commanded, and his partner obliged, firing a supernova of flaming energy at the accelerating caravan. However, one of the lackeys had clambered onto the roof and, with a flourish, magically deflected the blast, sending it spinning away ahead of them.

Wheels clattered off the stone paving, before bouncing onto dirt track, and Jarod spurred his ride to go faster as the attack shot over his head. Looking up beneath his grey aviator's helmet, he watched as the fiery projectile slammed into the forest, setting a trio of trees ablaze, and gulped as the fire began to spread. "Faster, beast!" he commanded, spurring the beetle to reach the opening in the treeline that was the sole road out of the village before the fire could spread to it. The Caladrius' cage was metal, but his lime green caravan was wood and the reins holding the beetle to it leather; if they caught fire he would be in major trouble.

Pierce gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes as Raya swooped in close. "Can we trap them in the fire?" he questioned, and the phoenix twitched her wings in the approximation of a shrug. "Not at this altitude, but maybe if we follow them in,"

"Do it," he commanded.

~P's E~

"Tyria?" The tech wizard was jolted out of her pained daze by Sarph's shout, and she weakly looked up to see the golden knight driving a horse-drawn caravan that he had apparently stolen from the hunters. "Are you coming?" he challenged.

"I can't," she moaned, gesturing to her bloody leg, and Sarph winced. "I see,"

"I'll be fine, go help Pierce and Grace," Tyria commanded. "I'm sure the qilins or someone will be able to help me," As if by magic, Cor appeared, running over in panic. "Tyria? Hang on, I'll get help!" the ruby qilin declared.

Sarph watched him go with raised eyebrows. "Alright. Good luck," he nodded, and was about to drive away, when distant music reached their ears and rapidly drew closer.

Within a minute, the Sonic Boom rocketed out of the forest and drew to a halt next to the caravan. Panting, Boomer rushed out of the shrine. "I saw everything! Come on!" he shouted, getting into his magicmobile and gunning the accelerator, driving in hot pursuit of the chase that had just entered the forest. Sarph nodded, following him with the stolen caravan.

As a group of qilin medics appeared to aid her, Tyria watched them go and smiled.

~P's E~

Pierce squinted, trying to protect his eyes from the smoke in the air without fully closing them. Raya was flying along the forest road in pursuit of his father's caravan ahead of them, but the fire in the forest had well and truly spread. The left side of the path was already an incendiary maelstrom, and the right side was rapidly catching too. Raya, of course, was unbothered, but Pierce and Grace were having a harder time of it.

It was some small consolation, though, to see that the hunters they were pursuing were having just as much trouble keeping the flames away from Jarod's tinderbox of a caravan. One of them obviously had some kind of protection magic, and was using it to deflect as many sparks as he could from the vehicle.

Raya flinched as a bang rang out, and through blurry vision Pierce noticed that a couple of Jarod's lackeys were crouched on the back of the two-storey caravan and were using the cage containing the unconscious Caladrius as cover from which to take shots at them.

In response, Raya returned fire, but aimed her fireballs downwards, targeting the metal/rubber wheels of the cage trailer and avoiding taking the chance of hitting the Caladrius.

"I can't get a clear shot," Grace frowned, searching for an opening to use her Roar. "If I attack, I might hit the Caladrius. And I can't safely warp reality while we're moving at this speed,"

"It's alright. Just keep looking for a chance," Pierce reassured her, and Grace nodded.

Suddenly, a familiar sound reached their ears as Raya continued flying through the conflagration of flame and bullets.

Jarod, cocking his head and frowning from the driver's seat of his caravan, narrowed his eyes. "Is that . . music?"

"Looks like Boomer's come to join the party," Pierce grinned.

Fast-paced pop music echoed through the mountain as the Sonic Boom, its metal and glass body and steel wheels impervious to the fire raging around it, raced down the path to catch up. Boomer whooped with a frenzied grin breaking out beneath his black spikes of hair, before flinching and rapidly patting out a stray spark that had caught his black cotton jacket through a gap in the sunroof. "Astro designed the Sonic Boom with metal tyres because the warp drive places too much stress on rubber, which would tear itself to pieces after a few warps. And a by-product of this design is that the Sonic Boom is completely fireproof!" he declared, driving straight through the blaze without a second thought.

Sarph's stolen caravan, on the other hand, was made of the same flammable materials as Jarod's, and the golden knight had been forced to find (or make) an alternative exit to the village.

Boomer slowed his car so that it was keeping pace right behind Raya. "You didn't really think that I'd let you have all the fun, did you?" he challenged, and Pierce, sparing a moment to glance back at him, grinned. "Glad to have you on board!"

At last, Jarod saw daylight ahead, and, with a cheer, he spurred his mount onwards, driving out out of the flaming forest. Raya and the Sonic Boom emerged directly afterwards, and, freed from the constraints of the trees, Raya immediately gained altitude. This inadvertently gave Pierce the perfect view of the long, winding road down the mountain that Jarod was guiding his caravan down, with the Sonic Boom in pursuit.

"Every second counts, Raya. Let's go in again," Pierce suggested, and Raya nodded, angling her wings and dive-bombing the caravan. Flame flickered around her wings as she flew, and charged a Solar Blast in her beak.

This, of course, hardly went unnoticed by Jarod. As the head hunter wrestled with the reins to guide his caravan around a turn, he spotted the yellow bird in the corner of his vision and growled. "That phoenix . . it's that phoenix that came between me and him. This is all its fault," he growled, before beckoning to a nearby lackey. "You. Drive," he commanded, shoving the reins in the unfortunate man's direction, before abdicating his seat and climbing onto the roof. Precariously balanced on the unstable surface, Jarod drew his gun and pressed the sight to his eye, watching the phoenix as she dived towards him.

He fired.

Suddenly, Raya screeched and spammed in mid-air, and her left wing crumpled, causing her to lose control. "Raya!" Pierce panicked, seeing the way that she was pitching towards the snowy side of the mountain. Behind him, Grace leapt clear and vanished into a fold of reality, as, on instinct, he produced his flute and frantically recalled Raya - just before she could crash, which sent Pierce skidding into a snowdrift.

Spluttering, the Tamer pulled his head out of the bank and wiped dirt and snow out of his eyes. Ignoring the way that his body ached, he concernedly looked at his flute, hoping Raya was alright. The flute's magic would heal her over time, but it was still worrying . . He glared after the caravan as it rumbled away - and blinked. "Oh, shit,"

Pierce _really_ needed to talk to his sister about her habit of running headlong into dangerous situations.

With a melody, Knox emerged from his flute and cast a baleful glare at him, but Pierce wasn't in the mood for any of his attitude. "I know, you hate sunlight and are perpetually in a bad mood, I don't care! We need to catch up with that caravan!" he snapped.

The werewolf was taken aback at Pierce's uncharacteristic snappishness. "Okay, okay. Grab on," he offered, baring his broad back.

~P's E~

"You're a meanie!" Grace shouted as she emerged from a rift in reality and punched Jarod in the face, sending him staggering and landing on the roof of the moving caravan.

"What?" the head hunter blinked, shocked by the unexpected assault. Glaring, he whipped his rifle around and fired again, but Grace swept her arm sideways and declared, "Reality Dragon's Spatial Wing!" In a blur of reality, the bullet vanished. She still didn't use that one much; she wasn't comfortable with using it on living beings, but inanimate objects or attacks directed at her were fine.

"Fine. I don't use magic much, but I suppose in this situation, I can make an exception," Jarod tched, and a brown magic circle appeared in his hand. "Kinetics!" he snapped, and an invisible force slammed into Grace's chest, knocking her into the air. Beneath her, the caravan moved without her, and the young Dragon Slayer immediately let herself fall into a rift, emerging in what she thought was Jarod's blind spot and preparing another blow.

But Grace had underestimated Jarod's hunter instincts, and a well-honed sixth sense for danger alerted the man to her attack. He wheeled and brandished his right fist, and suddenly her forwards motion was drained to nothing, sending her crashing to the ground. "What was that?" she moaned, picking herself up - and, as a now-familiar bang rang out, swallowed the bullet that had just been fired at her in a blur of reality with a small wave of her hand.

"Worth a shot," Jarod dismissively holstered his rifle once again.

Grace, realising it was impossible to take her foe by surprise, prepared for a full-force frontal attack. "Reality Dragon's Spiral Slash!" she declared, spreading her arms and throwing herself forwards, launching into a whirlwind of reality energy.

Jarod raised an arm and shouted, "Kinetics!" and, once again, the greenette was suddenly stopped dead. Then another invisible blow knocked her backwards, just as the caravan underfoot hit a bump. She collapsed, sliding dangerously close to the edge of the roof.

"My magic is simple, but that often leads people to underestimate its power," Jarod snorted, but didn't elaborate, instead delivering a kick to Grace's side before she could recover that sent her sliding off the side of the vehicle - but, at the last second, her hand caught the edge and she clung on, glaring defiantly up at the hunter as he leered down at her, and raised his foot to stamp on her hand.

"Not on your life!" Boomer shouted from where the Sonic Boom was trailing behind. He'd been watching the fight using the car's cameras, and the central speaker had been raised out of its normal position pointed straight upwards by a retractable bracket set into the roof and was now pointed directly at the roof. He'd been waiting to get a clear shot, and now, with Grace no longer on the roof and Jarod standing up straight, the hunter was a prime target. "Mega-Bass!" he shouted, launching his ultimate attack.

There was a massive _boom_ that drowned out all the other noise in the area, and a white missile flew from the main speaker in less than a second, smashing straight into Jarod and throwing him clear off the roof before he could even react.

The greenette grinned, but winced, feeling her grip starting to slip . .

"Grace! Jump! Or, fall! I'll catch you!" Pierce shouted from below her, and she looked down to see her adoptive brother, riding Knox, keeping pace beneath her. Smiling, she obligingly let go and fell straight into Pierce's arms. "Thanks!" Grace smiled as Pierce let her get a proper seat on the werewolf's back.

"Oi! I can't carry both of you - I'm not that strong!" Knox wheezed, and the two nodded. "Alright," Grace nodded, jumping in place and vanishing into an invisible rift. With his burden removed, the werewolf jumped sideways, scrabbling onto the roof of the caravan, just as Grace landed nearby.

The two wizards heard dark chuckling behind them, and turned to see a pair of hunter lackeys pointing guns at them. "Hands up, guilders!" one of them demanded.

Instead, a blast of grey Reality energy - "Reality Dragon's Roar!" - blew them off the roof and sent them crashing to the road below.

Grace tched. "Goons," before looking to Pierce for approval. The boy grinned and nodded, fully agreeing with both her assessment and response, and recalled Knox.

He looked at the connections behind him that attached the cage containing the Divine Caladrius to Jarod's caravan. "It would be really good to have a sword around now," he sighed.

"So, you're still a thorn in my side, eh boy?" Pierce and Grace turned to see Jarod Blastreyne grimacing at them from the front of the carriage roof, where he had fallen after Boomer attacked him. "And after all these years too . . and to think I'd dared to believe I never would have to deal with you again, son," he mused.

"Sorry to disappoint," Pierce shrugged.

"No you aren't. We established that when you loosed a rampaging chimera on my camp," the guild master rolled his eyes. "You know, three people died because you did that," he informed his son, curious as to what his reaction would be.

Pierce shrugged. He'd sorted out his position on taking people's lives a long time ago. While he'd never kill a victim, he shed no tears over the deaths of criminals. "And that's supposed to bother me? You can't claim they were innocent people, who never did anything to deserve a fate like that. Not like all the beasts you slaughter on a regular basis,"

Jarod conceded the point. "Oh well. You should have stayed out of this, son," he sighed, cocking his gun. "Though I'm certain this will grant me some notoriety in the criminal underworld. After all, how heartless does a man have to be to kill his own son?" he asked with a slight chuckle.

Pierce was about to respond, but paused, hearing a yelling noise. "What's that?" he questioned, looking up the hill to the sound's source.

There was an out-of control caravan speeding straight down the hill towards them. The horse had vanished, and Sarph, brandishing his sword and yelling like a maniac, was riding in the driver's seat. It was immediately obvious that the two caravans were on a collision course.

"What the hell?" Pierce blinked, and Grace gulped. Jarod followed their gaze and raised an eyebrow, which vanished beneath his helmet. "You've made a lot of very strange friends, son," he offered.

"And I wouldn't trade them for the world," Pierce nodded, accepting the backhanded compliment, even as Jarod turned and jumped off the roof. The Tamer blinked, before dashing forwards to see what his father had done, and saw that his father had landed on the giant beetle that was pulling his caravan and was in the process of using a knife to cut through the reins that kept them attached.

"Pierce! We have to bail!" Grace shouted from behind him. The blond could see that Sarph in his stolen caravan was bearing down on them, and the two caravans would crash into each other at any moment. But the one they were standing on was still moving too quickly. They couldn't jump off safely. "How?" he asked.

Grace thought it through, and realised there was only one option. She stepped forwards, standing next to Pierce, and a silver magic circle appeared in her hand. "Pierce, do you trust me?"

"Yes," the response was immediate, and Grace smiled. She'd put this off long enough as it was. "Alright. Reality Dragon's Spatial Wing!" The world in front of them blurred, and then the caravan's momentum carried them into the distorted space.

And then suddenly the two had landed in a snowdrift. Pierce immediately recovered, looking around, and hastily pulled Grace out of the snow. "Grace, did you just -" A massive crash interrupted them, and he turned to watch the caravans smash into each other only a few metres away. Timbers buckled, glass shattered, splinters flew everywhere and Sarph laughed like a madman as he was lifted clear by his Aera magic wings. When the dust settled, the two vehicles had been reduced to a haphazard pile of timber, with the giant cage holding the Divine Caladrius, which had remained intact, wedged into the side.

"Yeah. I teleported both of us," Grace nodded, shakily smiling.

They heard Sarph distantly shouting, "It's not teleportation! It's bending the fabric of . ." but they ignored him, and Pierce grinned. "Awesome. Well done,"

Grace weakly smiled in response. "Thanks, Pierce,"

"Oh, how touching," The two saw Jarod, riding on the back of his massive insect, bearing down on them. "Enjoy your final moments," he declared, looming over them as his pet reared up, preparing its front legs to stab the two wizards. Pierce stepped forwards, shielding Grace with his body - and paused, as the ground underfoot shook.

Suddenly, the snowy dirt underfoot splintered, cracks running through the ground as the snow shifted and began to slide away. "What the -" Jarod demanded, but before he could finish his sentence, the chunk of mountain they were standing on broke open, revealing that it was a thin layer of dirt and snow covering a massive crack in the ground, which the hunter and his beast fell into, screaming as they fell.

"Shi-zzle," Pierce hastily changed what he had been going to say, remembering just a second too late that Grace was standing right behind him.

The two peered over the edge. It was so deep, however, that they couldn't see the bottom. "Think he's dead?" Grace questioned, her orange eyes glistering in the reflected light of the snow, and Pierce shook his head. "Naah. His Kinetic magic would allow him to stop himself in mid-air moments before he landed. We'll be lucky if he bruised,"

"How does his magic work, anyway? It's weird, like all my momentum was just drained when he used it," Grace mused, confused.

"His magic lets him manipulate kinetic energy," Pierce explained. "You know, a being's motion. It lets him immobilise his enemies by preventing them from generating the forwards motion needed to move. He can also use it to attack, hitting his enemies with projectiles of pure force,"

"That's a weird magic," Grace commented.

"There's a lot of odd kinds of magic out there," the Tamer shrugged. "Long and short of it is, he'll have survived that fall," He Requipped his flute. "Meaning I gotta go after him," He quickly played the tune to summon Cubelios. Raya was still injured, and while he could have summoned Victoria, he knew that because Mount Zheng was a volcano, conditions would be hot down there, and Cubelios, as a cold-blooded snake, would deal with the heat better than Victoria could. "Okay, Cubelios, I need you to fly me down there," he commanded, pointing for emphasis, and the giant, winged viper obligingly spread her wings and offered her broad back for Pierce to ride her. The Tamer jumped on as Sarph flew over and the Sonic Boom pulled up nearby.

"Your father's down there, isn't he?" Boomer questioned, and Pierce nodded.

"We could just walk away?" Sarph offered. "We've successfully rescued most of the village and the Divine Caladrius, and his operation is in shambles. That's pretty good. No one could fault us for resting on our laurels,"

"No. I have to go after him. I can't let him escape, not now. Not after all this," Pierce shook his head.

"Well, me and Grace can't follow you down there," Boomer pointed out. "Neither can I. My wingspan is too wide, and it looks like the fissure narrows down there," Sarph pointed out. Pierce realised he was right; the only reason Cubelios would fit was because her wings were disproportionately small, so much so that it was a wonder she could fly to begin with.

"It doesn't matter. I still have to do this," Pierce shook his head. "Come on, Cubelios. Let's get down there," The snake hissed in what sounded like agreement, and lifted off, before diving down into the depths of the mountain and carrying the Tamer with her.

~P's E~

"Damnit, I can barely see anything," Pierce huffed when they reached the bottom. Cubelios hissed inquisitively, and Pierce cast her a baleful look. "We can't all have night vision, missy," he evenly retorted, before pausing as a thought struck him. "Wait, maybe we can," he mused, before tensing. "Take-Over: Werewolf!" At once, silver-grey fur coated his body, his teeth sharpened and became canine, lupine ears and a short tail emerged, and his eyes changed, becoming far more receptive to the minimal light. Pierce gritted his teeth and swallowed, trying to keep the rush of hormones that usually accompanied that spell at bay. Now was no time to go wild.

Cubelios approvingly hissed, and Pierce raised an irritated eyebrow. "Let me guess. You were trying to tell me to do this all along," The snake was unresponsive, and her Tamer was reminded of her problems with understanding the human language. Which was unfortunate, but what could you do?

The two wandered down the cave, searching for any sign of Jarod or his giant beetle. "It's too quiet," Pierce moaned to himself. This was why he liked having Kit around. The yokai always had something to say. His serpentine companion hissed sympathetically, and the Tamer again wondered exactly how much Cubelios understood when he talked.

They paused, noticing an unearthly yellow glow from a chamber up ahead. "Let's go investigate," Pierce raised his eyebrows, leading on, and soon they passed through a rocky archway, similar to a door.

"Whoa," Pierce gasped, and Cubelios hissed in amazement. Before them was a simmering, glowing pool of lava, which took up around half of the floor space of the chamber they were in, which was shaped roughly like a sphere horizontally bisected. Three passages intersected the cave, and the ground underfoot was a crisp, volcanic brown. "We really are inside an active volcano," he mused in wonderment.

Some sixth sense alerted him, and Pierce jumped aside as a bullet shot through the area where his head had been seconds prior. He cast around and spotted his father hidden in the shadows of an alcove above the lava. "That's Take-Over magic, isn't it?" Jarod sneered, and Pierce growled an affirmative, glaring at him. "You just keep finding new ways to disappoint me," the hunter mused. "To think my son would wilfully join his flesh with that of a lowly beast," he snorted in faint amusement.

Pierce remained silent, lacking a comeback, and instead played the tune to recall Cubelios. As he did, the hunter snorted. "No matter. Your head is forfeit one way or another," he growled, before, with a massive leap, he leapt over the pool of lava and landed opposite Pierce on the rock shelf. "Do you know what you've done?" he demanded.

Pierce was about to respond, but his father wouldn't let him. "You've ruined me! You've ruined my life's work! I spent decades building Severed Tusk from the ground up, and in the span of a night and a day it gets brought crashing down around my ears!" he barked, gritting his teeth. "I was on the cusp of greatness! With the power of the Divine Caladrius, the power to heal any wound or affliction instantly, I would have been unstoppable! Hades of Grimoire Heart, Eternity of Kairos End and even Mard Geer of Tartaros, none of them would have been able to stand up to a wizard who could immediately rid himself of any injury or curse they could inflict! Severed Tusk's position in the Balam Alliance would have been assured, and my name would be heralded as that of the greatest hunter who ever lived!"

" 'The greatest hunter who ever lived', huh?" Pierce parroted with a bitter grin, tapping his flute as he did to signal Inky. "Yeah, that sounds right. All you ever cared about was killing, so it stands to reason you'd want to be able to say no one does it better than you,"

Jarod rolled his eyes. "I'd tell you to stop being so subjective, but it's a bit late for that," he huffed. "Trying to talk to you never did get me anywhere. We both know that there's only one way either of us will walk out of here,"

"True," Pierce nodded, before bringing his flute to his lips and dashing forward, blasting Inky's ink at his father as he closed in for a direct hit. The blasts stopped dead as Jarod barked "Kinetics!" and drained the motion from them, but doing so allowed Pierce to close the distance and deliver a blow to his face that sent the man reeling backwards.

Jarod rolled with the punch, spinning on his heels and dealing Pierce a backhanded blow backed up with extra Kinetic energy, before raising his rifle again, and preparing to fire. However, Pierce, his muscles rippling with lupine energy, ducked under the shotgun and forced it upwards, sending the bullet up towards the cave ceiling, before simultaneously bringing his knee into Jarod's groin and his fist into his throat.

"Your best chance to inflict a fatal blow is to go for the throat," Pierce mockingly quoted.

"I can't believe you remember that," Jarod commented as the two disengaged, and the Tamer shrugged. "Turns out it works on humans and basilisks alike,"

"Of all the things I tried to teach you, _that's_ what sticks in your head. Typical," Jarod tched, before raising his gun and taking advantage of the distance between them to fire without impediment.

And, in a flash, a white streak of light shot from the flute and into Pierce's body. Recognising the sensation, Pierce released the Take Over and allowed the Yokai Unison to envelop him, feeling his hair extend into a massive white mane and magical fur coat his body. The bullet pinged off his new, bulletproof coat.

Jarod raised an eyebrow, sensing the unearthly magic power emanating from Pierce/Kit. "That's new,"

"Actually, Yokai Unison predates you by several centuries," Kit pointed out as he rushed forwards. Jarod brought an arm up and declared, "Kinetics!" and the yokai fusion stopped dead, granting him the time he needed to holster his gun and prepare for another bout of hand-to-hand combat.

But, instead, Kit leapt backwards to restrategise. "Damnit. That Kinetic magic of his will prevent us from dealing any solid blows," Pierce muttered, and Kit weighed in, sharing his tongue. "We could just wear him down in hand-to-hand combat?"

"No. Yokai Unison puts a major drain on my magic reserves, remember? We won't be able to hold on as long as he can," Pierce pointed out, trying to pitch his voice so that his father couldn't hear.

"Damnit. Well, there has to be some way around his Kinetic magic. What way could we attack so that he can't stop us from coming at him, even if he drains our momentum?" the yokai wondered, and Pierce pondered for a bit, before it suddenly hit him. "The ceiling! We need to hit him from above! Gravity will continue our attack even if he stops us!"

"Perfect!" Kit suddenly made a break for a curved part of the cavern wall, powering straight up the side of the cave. The hunter watched, but didn't respond as Kit powered through the slant between the wall and the ceiling, before kicking off and launching himself straight towards him. He simply raised his gun towards the wall and fired.

"Yokai Wave Blast - ah!" The bullet ricocheted off the side of the cave and punched Kit in the chest, boosted by the power of Kinetic force. While it was still deflected by his bulletproof magical fur, the impact knocked him sideways in mid-air . . and sent him toppling straight towards the nearby pool of lava.

A flash of light enveloped Pierce's body as Kit cancelled the Unison, and Pierce drew breath for some whispered final words before he vanished under the surface of the molten rock.

Jarod watched, emotionless, as his son disappeared beneath the bubbling lava. "Well, that took far too long," he growled, turning away and deciding it was time he found a way out of these caves.

But, beneath the lava, an eye opened. An eye, surrounded by feathers. A phoenix's eye.

The hunter turned back as he heard a bubbling from the lava. "What, did that brat give the volcano indigestion?" he groaned, glaring at the lava pool as though it were an errant child.

And then a massive shape burst from it, with beating wings and lava dripping from its feathers. Jarod gazed upwards, eyes wide as Pierce, his body coated in orange and gold feathers, plumage running down his head and neck, a burnished gold beak adorning his face, seven majestic tailfeathers splayed behind his legs, and sixteen-foot wings spread outwards with lava dripping off them.

At the last moment before hitting the lava, Pierce had invoked his Take Over: Phoenix Soul, drawing on Raya and, more importantly, her complete immunity to fire and lava. He hated to call on her again after she had been shot, but hoped he could be forgiven under the circumstances. And, sensing her soul inside him, he could tell she was enjoying this just as much as he was.

The look on his father's face was priceless. After all, it probably seemed to him that his son had just been reincarnated as an angel.

"Solar Blast!" Pierce shrieked, building a massive flare of solar energy, enhanced by the lava he had just been immersed in, in his beak, and aimed directly at his father, before unleashing it. The shot crossed the space between them in an instant, and detonated.

The fiery blast blew Jarod clear across the cave, sending him crashing to the ground. His helmet fell off and rolled to a halt nearby, letting his blonde dreadlocks loose, and, futilely, the hunter raised his gun and tried to fire . . only for the weapon to promptly liquefy in his hands, the sheer heat having reduced it to molten slag. He squeaked in horror as the white-hot metal burned his hands and frantically withdrew them.

"It's over, Jarod," Pierce declared, landing, furling his wings, and striding towards his father. "You're done," he said with finality in his voice.

Jarod could only numbly nod.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **So, funny story . . I got all the way up to writing this chapter before realising I still had no idea what kind of magic Jarod used. Up until now, all he's needed was his gun. Whoops. XD So I started thinking about what kind of magic a hunter would use. I've already done illusions, to bait and lure prey, traps, to trap, and pure animal strength to fight them on their own terms. Not to mention Metal Make for supplies. So how else could a person hunt? . . After a little while, I thought of magically paralysing targets. But Syrus' Venom Dart Magic already had paralytic capabilities. So I couldn't use any kind of poison. I then decided, instead of actual poison, why not simply a magic that could stop something from moving? That was when I began considering what a magic like that could do, which led me to researching kinetic energies. And thus I developed the principles of a magic that could sap kinetic energy from a person or object, preventing it from moving, and then use that stored energy to deliver attacks of pure force. Cool, huh? . . Not as hunting-related as I'd have liked, but it was this or Net Magic (not Internet magic, but fishing Net magic.), and that would be almost as lame as Vijeeter's canon Dance Magic. (Which is actually a shame, because Dance Magic has a lot of potential - ooh, I feel a lightbulb!)**

 **Anyway. Yes! Pierce has finally dealt Jarod the ass-whooping he deserves! And, again, I feel like this entire chapter has been one of the best fight scenes in this story to date, and I hope you all agree. Peace!**


	53. The End of The Hunt

Chapter 53: The End of The Hunt

At the top of the mountain, where the wind blew strong, a man clad entirely in white cloth with icy blue eyes and a blond beard hanging out of the shadow of his cowl grinned. "Tick tock, Phoenix's Eye. The Ends of your Days draw near, so sayeth the Assassin," he leered at the village beneath, watching the qilins and wizards celebrate their victory.

"So, you're here again," The man was so surprised to hear someone talking to him - to hear that someone had seen him - that he almost lost his balance on the rocky spur that he was perched on. Arms flailing as he recoiled, he frantically regained his balance and turned to see who had found him. It was a girl with seaweed-green hair, a pink frock, and dark blue eyes that twinkled like stars. Who was balancing on the side of the unstable rocky slope as though it were perfectly even ground.

"Who are you? How did you find me?" the Assassin demanded.

"I'm Ariel, a wizard of the Phoenix's Eye guild. I work the reception desk at the guild dormitory," the receptionist introduced herself with a sunny smile and a jaunty bob of her head.

"You're from Phoenix's Eye?" the man frowned, but he was forestalled.

"And you're Aberforth, the Assassin of Kairos End," Ariel commented.

"How do you know that?" Aberforth demanded. In a flash of light, a gun appeared in his hand with Requip Magic. Ariel flinched, half expecting to be shot - not that it would kill her if she was, but pain was a thing - but instead the Assassin pointed the gun towards himself and asked, "Blaster, how does she know that?"

If the gun replied, Ariel didn't hear it. "Oh, yes. You have a bad habit of talking to your weapons. I remember now," she mused.

The gun vanished, demonstrating how disconcerted Aberforth was right now. "Come, Glider!" he declared in a panicked state, manifesting a wooden staff, from which immediately unfolded four wings; two large and two small. "Retreat, Glider! Retreat!" the Assassin freaked out, jumping off the side of the mountain and gliding downwards with his staff.

Ariel watched him go, seeming disappointed. "Aww. And here I was hoping for some intelligent conversation,"

~P's E~

By the afternoon, everything had been cleaned up. Jarod and his team had been locked up in the shrine, awaiting the arrival of the Magic Council to lock them up, and the wizards of Phoenix's Eye were gathered in the village with the Divine Caladrius and the qilins that had survived the ordeal.

"Thank you, wizards of Phoenix's Eye," The Divine Caladrius spoke on behalf of the entire village to the six wizards. "Words cannot express our gratitude for what you have done for us. We will never forget your actions over the last few hours,"

"That's all we ask," Pierce nodded with a smile. And it was. They'd kicked bad guy butt, gone ridiculously overboard doing it, stuck to their own principles above all else, and made sure that the fact that they had done all of these things would never be forgotten. What more could a wizard of the Phoenix's Eye guild want?

As one, every qilin in the village, and the Caladrius herself, bowed low to the six humans - and the yokai who had shown up to hog as much of the attention as he could.

"Kit, get off. You're ruining the scene," Pierce hissed to the spectral fox who, as usual, was perched on his shoulder, and was bathing in the adoration of the crowd as though he had single-handedly routed the hunters and saved the village.

"No!" Kit retorted. "This is my victory too!"

"Then can you at least stop preening?" Tyria whispered. "You're making us look like attention seekers,"

"You're just jealous that you can't look as good being praised as I can," Kit boasted.

Suddenly, he found himself falling, and landed on a nearby roof. Grace grinned and closed the rift she had used to relocate the troublesome yokai.

"Okay, okay, that's enough!" Pierce finally shouted. "We were happy to help, really,"

"Y'all heard him!" Cor agreed from the head of the crowd. "Enough standing around, we gots work to be done!"

~P's E~

Shortly afterwards, Eve was called into the shrine. "Caladrius," she bowed to the great white bird.

"Eve," the demigod nodded in return.

"I shouldn't be here. I don't deserve to," the Celestial wizard shook her head, turning to leave, but there was a rush of motion and a wall of feathers blocked the doorway. She turned back to see the massive bird crouched over her and looking down with closed eyes. "Why not?" the Divine Caladrius gently asked.

"During the fight, when you were captured, I just - I froze," Eve admitted. "I heard the gunshot and I was just so scared, I couldn't do anything," she sighed. "I'm sorry . . I'm just weak,"

"You have nothing to apologise for," the Caladrius reassured her. "Everything's fine in the end, isn't it?"

"Yeah . . no thanks to me," Eve sighed.

"But doesn't that just mean that you have to keep trying?" the white bird asked.

"Huh?"

"Maybe you aren't strong now . . but that doesn't mean that you never can be," the Caladrius explained. "You have to keep trying, to keep pushing forward. If you can do that, then someday, you really will become truly strong,"

"You think so?" she questioned, and the demigod nodded. "Of course,"

"Thank you," Eve whispered.

"As a matter of fact, I think I have something for you," the Caladrius murmured, briefly burying her beak in the inner crevices of her wing joints. When she emerged, three of the small, soft, downy feathers from the base of her wing were clutched between her lips, and she gently dropped them at Eve's feet.

"Uh . . what are these?"

"A present," the Divine Caladrius smiled down at her. "To be honest, I'm not sure what these will do for you, if anything. But I still want you to take them, to remind you that you can be strong,"

Eve smiled, bending down and scooping up the three feathers. "Thank you. So much," she smiled, eyes watery.

~P's E~

It wasn't long before a squadron of soldiers from the Magic Council arrived via regulation airship, and Pierce was pleasantly surprised to find it led by Lahar. "Hey, Lahar!" he waved upon noticing the airship landing in the town square.

"Pierce," the Councilman nodded his head graciously, before taking in Pierce's appearance; the Tamer hadn't yet had the opportunity to clean himself up after a close brush with fiery death, and his shorts and sandals in particular looked rather singed. "You look like you picked a fight with a volcano and came off second-best. What happened?"

"I picked a fight with a volcano and the volcano came off second-best," Pierce dryly quipped. "Nice to see you too, Lahar,"

"So, this is the Village of Qilins. I must say, I never thought that I would have due reason to come here," he admitted.

"Well, Severed Tusk did try to invade and capture every qilin here," the Tamer shrugged. "We took care of it, though. You know me, I can't just sit by while beasts are in danger,"

Lahar blinked. "You and your team took down an entire dark guild by yourselves?"

"It's not that big a deal. Most of them were asleep, and we just trapped them in their own caravans," Pierce pointed out, and the black-haired man decided to accept this. "Alright, then where are they?"

"Most of the goons are locked up in their own cages . . the qilins were a little too happy to help with that," the Phoenix mused, before gesturing to the shrine. "The Guild Master and his top associates have been locked in the shrine,"

"I see. Men! You heard him! Move out!" Lahar commanded, and his soldiers hopped to it.

"So, how's your life been?" The two young men fell into step as Pierce led Lahar towards the shrine, and he responded, "Fine. Busy," he admitted with a slightly irritated countenance. "Sometimes I wonder what it's like living a carefree life as a plain old guild wizard . . but then I remember how much more I do for Fiore than any guild wizard ever could and immediately dismiss the notion," he shot a smile at Pierce, who chuckled in response. "Oh yeah? When was the last time you dismantled an entire dark guild overnight?"

"I'll admit, you have me beat there," Lahar snorted, but shrugged it off. "Severed Tusk, you said, right?"

"Yeah," Pierce nodded.

"Isn't that the hunter's guild led by your father?" the Council member raised an eyebrow, but Pierce remained silent, and he was about to drop it and change the subject, but the Tamer spoke. "Look, I just finished taking out eight years' worth of frustration with him in first a high-speed chase and then a big fight in the heart of an active volcano. I really don't want to think about him more than I have to for at least a few weeks,"

"I suppose I can understand that," Lahar accepted. "Anyway. I heard that you've been visiting Cobra in prison?"

"Oh? Yeah, I have. Thanks again for arranging that," the blond nodded.

"You're quite welcome," the raven-haired man replied. "Do you really think he can change?"

Pierce raised an eyebrow. "Erik? Sure I do. In fact, I think he already is,"

"I hope that you're right," Lahar nodded. "It would make me very happy to see a dark wizard truly reform,"

"Oh yeah?" Pierce pursed his lips and raised his eyebrows, and the older man sighed. "Did you know that, out of the six hundred thousand or so wizards in Fiore, forty-eight percent of them are criminals?"

Pierce looked at him in surprise. " _Forty-eight_ . . seriously?"

"It's not a statistic that we like to advertise much," Lahar shrugged. "But yes. And most of them aren't even bad people, they just fall in with the wrong crowd and by the time they realise they're on a dark path, it's too late to back out,"

"That's a depressing thought," the Tamer admitted.

"Indeed. Therefore, the idea that even one dark wizard, especially a famous one such as Cobra, or Erik as you know him, could reform and join the light? It would set an example, it would show the world that no one is truly irredeemable," his companion nodded. "I just hope that you're right about him,"

"Me too," Pierce agreed. By now, they had reached the shrine, and, out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw a silver blur disappearing into the tree line. It looked faintly like Knox, but that couldn't have been right . . it was probably just a trick of the light.

As they entered the shrine, they passed Eve, who was just leaving. Pierce cast a glance at her, but she didn't say anything, and neither did he.

~P's E~

"Pierce?" Pierce looked up to see Cor nearby. "Oh, hey, Cor,"

Lahar and his men had taken the Severed Tusk wizards and left, and the Phoenixes were preparing to return home. At present, Pierce was reclining just outside the shrine, enjoying the sunshine.

"You know, I never did tell you about how your heart looks to me," the qilin offered.

The Tamer chuckled. "So?"

"So . . do you want me to?" Cor asked, frowning.

"No," Pierce simply said, shaking his head. "I thought about that, and . . I already know who I am. I'm a Beast Tamer Wizard of the Phoenix's Eye guild. I'm Grace's big brother, and a friend to beasts the world over. I'm not perfect, but I'm good enough. And, until that changes, I don't need to know any more than that,"

"That's, well, impressive. Really," Cor smiled, twitching his tail. "So, does stuff like this happen to you guild wizards a lot?" the ruby qilin asked.

The blond considered the question. considered the question. "It has been happening more and more frequently," he mused, nodding.

"Then that settles it. I wanna join you," he declared.

The Tamer blinked; he hadn't actually thought Cor would accept the offer he'd made the previous day.

"If the same sort of thing that happened here is happening to other places in the world, I can't just sit by and let it happen!" Cor, his faintly Irish accent becoming more pronounced in his passion, declared. "I might not be able to do much, but it's better than nothing. And from what I've seen, joining up with you is a good way to go about it,"

Pierce grinned. "Alright then. Welcome aboard,"

~P's E~

After a celebratory lunch (in true Phoenix's Eye tradition), the Garuda took off, setting sail for Magnolia once more. "You know, this whole escapade really was very well timed," Pierce commented to Tyria as Mt Zheng vanished into the clouds behind them.

"How do you figure that?" Tyria blinked, confused by the statement.

"Because of what's happening next week. All of us, except Sarph at any rate, need as many points in our favour as we can get, or Master might not pick us," the Tamer explained.

"Pick us? For what?" Tyria questioned.

Pierce blinked. "Did you really not hear?" he asked, and the Electrian shook her head.

"Huh, shame. It's only the biggest event all year, you'd think someone would have talked about it,"

"Out with it! What's happening next week?" Tyria demanded.

"The S-Class promotion trials," Pierce explained. "Next week, seven members of the guild are gonna get chosen by Master Feng to compete for the chance to become an S-Class wizard,"

"Oh. Cool," Tyria grinned, but the look in her eyes told Pierce that she wasn't really thinking about it. His suspicions were confirmed when she took a quick look around to make sure no one was watching, before continuing, "Also . ."

"Yeah?" the Tamer raised his eyebrows, cocking his head.

"I, uh . . didn't thank you for saving my life back there," Tyria pointed out, suddenly unable to meet his eyes.

"Oh, that?" Pierce nodded. "It was nothing. Any time," He smiled, and his eyebrow twitched in confusion and mild concern as he noticed the flush that was creeping up Tyria's cheeks.

"You broke your vow against using guns . . for me. That's not nothing, that's . ." Again, the Electrian stumbled over her words, before finally bursting out; "No one's ever done something like that for me before. So . . I want to thank you. Properly,"

"Oh, ok -" Pierce was suddenly cut off as Tyria stepped forwards and reached up, wrapping her dark-skinned arms around the Tamer's neck and pulling him down to her. Blue shirt met silver vest as she kissed him, pressing her lips into his and revelling in the sensation of the closeness that she'd never experienced before.

Pierce was caught off guard, but didn't complain, wrapping his right arm around her shoulders and resting his left hand on her neck, he returned the kiss, leaning down to his shorter teammate. Her lips tasted like metal, but he didn't mind, revelling in the coppery scent of her breath.

After a moment that stretched into infinity, they broke apart, and hazel eyes met blue as both Pierce and Tyria processed what had just happened, the blond bearing a soppy smile while the bluenette had a small smile and still-flushed cheeks.

"That was -" Pierce began to speak, but Tyria was gone, vanished so quickly that a blinking dotted outline of where she had been was superimposed on Pierce's vision. "Amazing," he finished, even though she was gone and couldn't hear him.

Across the deck, Sarph, who had been watching the whole thing and even taken a photograph with his Archive, grinned. "I totally won the bet,"

~P's E~

By the next morning the six wizards had all returned home, but no one was settling back into the usual routine. The majority of the guild's younger members all seemed to be in a frenzy of excitement; no sooner had they gotten back than Pierce and Boomer had snagged solo jobs from the board and dashed out again.

"Jeez. What's up with them?" Lync asked from his seat in the couches in the centre of the guild hall. Sarph settled down next to him and shrugged. "Apparently the S-Class Trials are coming up soon. In my experience, they all want to prove to Master that they've got what it takes to be one of the participants,"

"S-Class, huh?" Lync considered this, rubbing his pocket. "I heard about that. Apparently it means something different here in Fiore? Though I guess you'd know all about that,"

"Well, of course. That said, if my understanding is correct, the definition is the same. So don't think about it too much," the knight shrugged.

"Oh, okay," Alice settled in nearby, leaning on Lync's shoulder. "Hey, babe," he greeted her as Tyria settled in on Sarph's other side. "If you see Pierce, I'm not here," she hissed.

"Oh, hi, Alice," Sarph smiled. "And Tyria, you shouldn't be embarrassed. So you kissed, it's not the end of your -"

"Wait, what?" Lync gasped.

"You actually kissed him?" Alice eagerly demanded.

"Took you long enough," the Vestal huffed.

"My point is, you're still friends. You still know each other. It doesn't mean things have to change between you," Sarph explained.

Tyria nodded. "Okay. Nothing has changed. Yeah. Anyway," She cleared her throat, and hastily changed the subject. "Speaking of the S-Class Trials, do you think any of us might have a shot?"

"What, at being selected by the old crone?" Lync raised his eyebrows thoughtfully, but was playfully swatted by Tyria for the insult to her guild master. "What? She is one! Besides, no way,"

"I wouldn't be sure about that," Alice pointed out. "Since we're still newcomers here, our odds are probably low. But you, Tyria? You might have a chance,"

"You think so?" the bluenette mused thoughtfully. "That would be cool. But I'd be screwed,"

"Why? I think you have a chance," Alice pointed out, but Tyria shook her head. "Nope. One reason; Lorus,"

"Who?" Lync frowned.

"He's a tough illusion wizard who's not only a shoo-in for selection, but the odds-on favourite to win," the dark-skinned girl shrugged. "I fought him a few months ago. Got my ass kicked,"

"Oh," Alice considered this. "Well, you have been getting stronger lately. I heard about your Mark Infinity mode,"

"You mean the mode that I can't use without a massive external power source?" Tyria wryly pointed out. "Don't get me wrong, on the off chance I do get picked, I'm gonna give it my all. But I don't really expect to win against him,"

"Well, there's one thing that being on both sides of a conflict against totalitarian empires has taught me," Lync shrugged.

"What's that?"

"Never say never. Right when everything looks hopeless, the most amazing things can happen that'll change everything," the Vestal explained.

~P's E~

Little did Lync know, but one of those things was happening right as they spoke. For, outside, at the base of the hill, a small black ball was hopping its way up the path. "This is humiliating," a voice growled. "I'm going to need such a good scrubbing when this is over with," another, more gravelly one, agreed, and a nasally third chimed in, "But it'll all be worth it very soon,"

The three voices sniggered as the ball, in defiance of gravity, continued to roll up the incline.

Eventually it reached the guild hall, and bumped into the closed doors. "Alright," the first of the voices growled. "How am I going to get through this?" the third wondered.

Looking around, the ball spotted a small hole in the foundations. "There! That looks like my entrance," the second declared, and the ball rolled into the crack.

It found itself in a tunnel in the stone foundations filled with straw and twigs. "Hmph. Not very -" A squeak interrupted the voice, and the ball turned - to find a large, angry-looking rat glaring at it.

"Oi! And what are you looking at?" the ball irritably demanded. Unimpressed, the rat grabbed the ball in its forepaws and started dragging it through the tunnels, in spite of its protests. "Let go!" "Let go right now!" "I have a mission that you will not interfere with, you smelly rodent!"

Eventually, the ball was dragged to a larger space, and several high-pitched yelps alerted the ball as to what its fate was about to become . . right as the mother rat tossed it into a nest full of squealing baby rats. All of which immediately tried to bite at the interesting new food their mother had brought them.

"Back!" "Back, I say!" "Keep your grubby mitts off me, you filthy animals!" Struggling, the ball finally broke free of the nest, only to find the mother glaring down at it with a menace. It immediately backed up until it reached the wall, knowing there was no escape from the angry animal about to eat it.

And then the ball's collective intelligence realised that the wall behind it wasn't stone, but plaster.

On the other side of said wall, Blanca was reading the latest edition of Sorcerer Weekly, when suddenly something shot out just over her head. She gasped, looking up, and spotting the hole in the plaster that had an angry rat chittering at it. "Why you -"

As Blanca loosed a string of obscenities at the unfortunate rat, the ball flew across the room, bounced off the floor and came to a rest near the centre of the guild hall, dorectly in front of Alice's chair. "Ugh, I feel like I'm going to throw up," the ball commented.

Alice and Lync blinked, noticing the ball. "A Bakugan?" they both exclaimed in surprise.

Tyria then spotted the ball, and raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Alice!" the ball's three voices shouted all at once, and it leapt off the ground and towards her. Alice instinctively cupped her hands and caught it, and it promptly unfolded into what looked like a tiny, three-headed dragon.

"So that's a living Bakugan," Sarph raised his eyebrows. Before now, he'd only seem the Mechanical variety. Tyria grinned. It had been a while since she'd seen Hydranoid. She hadn't recognised him at first.

"Not just any Bakugan. This is my partner!" Alice excitedly declared, and the Bakugan swivelled to look at her. "I am Darkus Alpha Hydranoid," he introduced himself, three different voices in sync.

"Oh yeah! I remember now, Alice told me all about you," Tyria smiled at the little Bakugan. "Oh did she? Hmph, that's a pity. I was hoping to make a good impression,"

Alice and Lync, both of whom had met Hydranoid before and knew him, chuckled.

"So, what is this place?" Hydranoid asked in his deeper voice, before his nasally voice chimed in, "I went looking for you in Electria, but your grandfather told me you'd gone to Fiore for an important mission,"

"Does he talk like that all the time?" Sarph, and Lync nodded. "Three heads and half a brain between them,"

"This is the Phoenix's Eye wizarding guild," Alice explained. "The guild master has agreed to let us use her guild as a base of operations in Fiore, and we're on permanent detachment on a secret mission,"

"Ooh, secrets. Very interesting," Hydranoid chuckled. "You can count on my support for as long as I'm here," his main voice reassured Alice, who smiled. "Thank you, Hydranoid. It will be a pleasure to fight alongside you once again,"

"As long as he's here?" Tyria parroted, and Alice explained. "Hydranoid spends about half of his time with me, and the other half among his fellow Bakugan in Vestroia,"

"Ah. So that's why I don't see him much," the Electrian nodded.

"Well, Hydranoid, come with me, and we will get your official membership of the guild sorted out," Alice declared, standing and letting her Guardian Bakugan perch on her shoulder.

"Wait, membership?" "Me?" "What exactly do you mean by that?"

"It means, if you're going to be part of Phoenix's Eye, you need the guild mark on your body," Alice nonchalantly explained.

"Wait!" "Wait!" "Wait!" "I didn't agree to getting a tattoo!" Hydranoid's three heads complained, but it was to no avail as Alice snatched him up and dragged him over to Sarah at the bar. "Sarah? We have a new member who needs to be stamped!" she trilled.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **So, Divine Caladrius is officially over, Cor has joined the team, and next chapter the S-Class Trials can begin!**

 **But first, the elephant in the room; Hydranoid. Well, the reason I changed my mind and decided to involve another Bakugan character will make more sense next chapter . . but let's just say I saw an opportunity and I took it. Plus, things are gonna work out so much better this way than my original plan! I can't wait! So you all kind of just need to go with it and trust I know what I'm doing . . That said, Hydranoid won't be here forever. He needs to get back to Vestroia eventually. (And I hope everyone enjoyed the scene with the rat. It's basically Bakugan convention that whenever a Bakugan is abroad in the human world without a Brawler to help out, they get unwillingly involved in all kinds of mischief, usually involving small animals and people's feet. So I had to follow suit. XD)**

 **And the other elephant in the room; Pierce and Tyria's first kiss! And it only took two hundred and twenty-five thousand words! XD Seriously, I've heard of 'slow burn' romances, but that took a hell of a long time. XD Peace!**

~P's E~

Jarod irritably itched at a scratch on his wrist where he languished in his jail cell. One of those monsters had _bitten_ him. Disgusting creatures. And no one had bothered to give him anything for the injury.

Nearby, the other members of his group had their own personal cells. Motormouth was babbling incoherently, Juniper was napping, and Syrus was sitting and thinking.

Kroeber was absent. When Pierce had shot him - Jarod was still amazed that his son had had the gumption to do such a thing, and had hardly believed it when Motormouth had told him - the bullet had hit his left shoulder. It was a grievous wound, not mortal but only a few inches off it, that had shredded the tendons in his shoulder. He had been taken to the medical bay when they had arrived at the prison the previous day and hadn't been heard from since, though Jarod had heard one of the guards callously remarking within his earshot that the unfortunate trapper would probably lose use of his left arm. Granted, there were magics that could fix it, but no one was going to waste those on a jailed criminal.

Stars twinkled above him in the night sky, only visible through the solitary skylight, and moonlight shone down on the remnants of Severed Tusk.

Suddenly, a retching sensation rose in his stomach, sending a tingling feeling throughout his entire body. Jarod gasped, choking as some force awakened in his body, sending convulsions through it as his muscles bulged, splitting his clothes down the seams, and dark grey fur sprouted all over his body. He collapsed forwards and his helmet fell from his head as new, triangular ears emerged from it and his face elongated into a lupine muzzle, while his waistline burst open and a furry tail emerged.

"Ah . . ah . . AAAAARR-OOOOOOOOO!" the newly transformed werewolf howled before he could stop himself, before choking on his own voice. Wresting back control of his body from the emerging instincts, Jarod forced himself to sit up on reshaped, digitigrade legs and looked at what he had become. "No . . NO!" he shouted, refusing to accept this new reality. "This cannot be happening!"

~P's E~

Knox slept well that night.


	54. The Phoenix's Feathers

Chapter 54: The Phoenix's Feathers

 _ **Previously, on The Guild Next Door . . .**_

 _"Welcome back to DK's Ds!" Kit grinned._

 _"Okay, um," He frantically shifted through papers, before finding something appropriate. "Here we are; S-Class Wizards in Phoenix's Eye!"_

 _"Much like in Fairy Tail, S-Class wizards are selected by way of taking, and winning, a trial. Unfortunately, unlike Fairy Tail's Tenrou Island, Phoenix's Eye doesn't have its very own island to call sacred ground. So we hold the trials in different places all the time. It's mostly just a matter of whatever dump's naive enough to let us smash things up there for a week or two," he chuckled. "Previous locations include deserted islands, remote mountains, active volcanoes, and I near Master's been looking into renting out the moon!"_

 _~P's E~_

It was January 21, X785, and the entirety of Phoenix's Eye had been called to the guild hall for a meeting.

"You know, I don't think I really grasped how many people there are in the guild until now," Alice commented, looking around. She, Hydranoid and Lync, as well as the majority of Team Pierce (Hare was off mooning over Totomaru as usual and all of the S-Class wizards, including Sarph, had been called to the Master's quarters), were all gathered around their usual table. Easily a hundred people were crammed into the hall; no doubt the entire membership of the guild.

Tyria turned to ask Pierce a question, but the words caught in her throat, and she instead looked at Boomer. "This is all about the S-Class promotion trials, isn't it?"

Boomer nodded. "Sure. It's a pretty big deal,"

Pierce, of course, was fully aware that Tyria was acting odd. He took note of her twitching jaw and slightly widened eyes and concluded that she was stressed about something. Was it the kiss? It hadn't been that big a deal . . right?

"I heard that even Faraday showed up," Boomer pointed out.

"No way," Kit huffed, from where he was lying on the table.

"Seriously? Faraday's here?" Pierce blinked. "Wow. I wonder why? She's usually never around,"

"Who's Faraday?" Lync asked.

"The strongest wizard in the whole guild," Tyria explained. "She's really creepy, never says anything, and based on the aura of power that hangs around her, could obliterate the lot of us in ten seconds flat,"

"Whoa," Lync gulped.

"Yeah . . If the trial participants this year have to fight her, then I feel bad for whoever gets nominated," Boomer admitted.

"Even though that might be you?" Kit snidely questioned.

"Don't scare me like that, you dumb ghost," the Sound Wizard huffed.

"Attention!" Master Feng shouted, and at once, all noise in the guild ceased and the nigh-hundred members of her guild all looked up at her at once. "Are you all quite done?" Behind her stood the assembled S-Class wizards of the guild; Garrotte, Sarph, Artorias and Faraday.

There was a murmur of assent from the assembled wizards, and Feng nodded. "Good. Now, we all know why we're gathered here today?"

Another round of affirmation. "Good! Well, this year we've picked up a lot of new recruits, so I'm going to go through the way that the Trials work again!"

Reaching into her red gi, the guild master produced seven warm red feathers, clutched in her hand. "As you all know, there are seven feathers in the tail of a phoenix!"

"Is that right?" Grace whispered, and Pierce nodded. "Yeah. Four long ones for flight stability, two on each side, and three short ones in the middle for steering. I'm pretty sure that the feathers she uses for the trials are fake, though,"

"To reflect this, every year, I select seven members of the guild and entrust them all with one of these feathers, which they must guard with their life!" Master Feng shouted. "Because, should you lose your feather, you immediately forfeit any and all opportunity to become an S-Class wizard this year - unless you can get it back!"

The guild remained silent, awaiting her next words.

"Now! The venue for this year!" she continued, and the crowd looked a little crestfallen that she was maintaining the suspense and not telling them who had been chosen to compete. "Unfortunately, renting out the moon has proven to be a no-go. There's no oxygen up there or something, and apparently humans need that," she huffed, disappointed, before forging on. "But I have found the next best thing!"

"In honour of the name of our guild, and everything that we have achieved over the last year, I've decided that the best place we can possibly hold the trials is the sacred ground of Phoenix's Eye itself! The ruins of the town of Diamauros, where our first guild hall stood fifty-six years ago!"

At this, the guild cheered. "The ruins of the old guild hall, huh?" Boomer mused.

"Is that good?" Grace asked, and Pierce shrugged. "I don't know. I've never been there, only Master Feng herself and the really, really old members have,"

"And now, what you've been waiting for! The seven people who I have chosen to compete in this year's S-Class Promotion Trials!" Feng declared. The crowd cheered, but was immediately silenced by her glare.

"Lorus! You have shown great potential and a desire to make amends after your mistakes at the Harvest Festival, and I have decided that I should give you a chance to prove that you regret your actions. Come and claim your feather," Feng commanded, and Lorus rose, his blue cloak with black trim falling around him as he did, before striding towards the job board. Master Feng dropped the first feather over the balcony and he caught it, musing, "Perhaps the villain will have the opportunity to perform a heel-face-turn? Heroes do often get the girls,"

"Boomer!" The pudgy Sound wizard stood in surprise. "Your actions during the Ghoulia fiasco, and your conduct since then, have convinced me that you are now ready to try your hand at becoming an S-Class wizard," she explained, beckoning him to join Lorus at the job board. "Don't let me down," she commanded, dropping another feather down to him.

"Tyria!" The Electrian girl blinked. She honestly hadn't expected to be chosen. "Since you joined, I've watched you grow and find your strength, and I would be remiss in my duties as your guild master if I didn't give you the chance to continue your development. Claim your feather," she commanded, and, still somewhat in shock, Tyria numbly crossed the guild hall and joined the other two. Feng dropped the feather, but instead of catching it, it got caught in Tyria's hair, and she hastily yanked it out.

"Blanca!" The Plastic wizard grinned, muttering, "Took you long enough," under her breath as she rose and joined the group. "Your recent growth hasn't escaped my notice, and I believe that this experience will give you an opportunity to further that growth!"

"That's right! I'm the best at being an S-Class trial taker!" Blanca grinned, not noticing the way that her guild master's nose wrinkled at this, and plucked a feather out of the air as she joined the others at the job board.

"Totomaru!" The Fire wizard was impassive as he left the bar and joined the group at the job board. "Your commitment to the guild has proven to be impressive, and I believe your efforts to endear yourself to our community should be rewarded! So

I want you to show me what you've got!" she declared, dropping a feather to him.

"Alice!" Huh, Alice Gehabich mused, looking around to see who had been nominated. There must be someone else in the guild with the same name as her, because there was no way . . . The Brawler slowly realised everyone in the guild was looking at her. "Me?" she squeaked, reluctantly standing.

"I'm convinced that you have more to offer than you have demonstrated since joining the guild, and I'm hopeful that the trials will give you proper motivation," Feng explained.

Now there was only one feather left in Master Feng's hand, and the whole guild was waiting to see who the last person she would choose would be.

"Pierce!" The Tamer's eyes widened, and he grinned. "I have observed you making a conscious effort to get stronger and better yourself, and your recent victory over your father cemented in my mind the proof that you deserve the chance to become an S-Class wizard," Feng explained. "Come and claim your feather!"

And now, the seven candidates had been assembled, but Pierce caught Grace and Lync watching them wistfully.

"Now, remember! Each of you may choose one person as a partner to help you in the trials, and you have three days to prepare. All of you, do your best," Feng commanded, and she promptly vanished back into her quarters.

Sarph immediately made his way back down to Team Pierce as they regrouped. "Congratulations, all four of you," he commended his friends. "It seems the odds are in our favour that I will no longer be the only S-Class wizard in this team,"

"Well, it kinda stinks that it won't be me, though," Grace pouted, but Pierce took her hand. "Well, how about you just be my partner and help me out, then?"

"Okay!" the young Dragon Slayer chirped, satisfied with this.

"Wait, what about me?!" Kit demanded, glaring at him with such intensity that his eyes seemed to have turned white and his teeth sharpened into large triangles.

Tyria frowned thoughtfully. Who could be her partner? Pierce and Boomer were out (for so many reasons), as was Grace, and not Sarph either . . the only person in her usual team available was Hare, and that was just a recipe for disaster.

"So, Alice. Want me to help you out?" Lync questioned, and Alice smiled, but shook her head. "Actually, sorry, but I'm going with Hydranoid," she told him. "He's my partner, if we don't fight together our bond is meaningless,"

"Yes!" "Thank you, Alice, I won't let you down!" the Bakugan on her shoulder declared.

"You just had to make the bloody _Bakugan_ an official member of the guild," the Vestal grumbled. "I didn't paint the guild mark on Aluze,"

"Aww, cheer up. You can be my teammate instead!" Tyria suggested, and Lync cast her a glance. "Oh, alright. I might as well," he shrugged, leaving the tech wizard to be somewhat put out by his lack of enthusiasm.

Meanwhile, Hare was impatiently eyeing Totomaru as he and Blanca crossed the room. "When is he going to come over here and beg me to be his partner?" she impatiently wondered.

Her jaw dropped as, instead, Totomaru reached the girls' table and quietly addressed a question to Fleur. The nod and thumbs-up she gave him confirmed her suspicions.

Hare felt like her eyes had turned into angry black triangles and a burning red aura had enveloped her body. "That speechless skank, stealing the hand of _my_ Totomaru!" she growled, before it hit her what she had just said. "His hand . . she stole his hand! First comes partnership and then comes marriage!" she sobbed, and the people around her quietly backed away.

It was then that something inside her snapped. "No! I won't let that hussy take him without a fight! I _need_ to get into these Trials!" she growled, scouring the room . . and her eyes alit on Boomer.

The unfortunate Sound wizard found his arm suddenly snatched in a vice-like grip and an overbearing Speed Wizard shouting, "I am going to be your partner for these Trials! Got it?!"

He could only meekly nod and gulp, "Yes'm,"

Meanwhile, Lorus had chosen Wesley as his partner, and the Ball wizard, clad in his light blue armour as always, grinned at the illusionist. "Thank you very much for trusting me to help you claim the title of S-Class, Wesley said with an excited smile," he narrated.

"It's simple logic, really. The newfound hero doesn't have a lot of raw power behind his magic, and your magic is nothing but raw power. You fill the fledgling hero's holes in his abilities, and he does the same to yours," Lorus replied.

"You said it, he declared enthusiastically!" Wesley agreed.

Meanwhile, Artorias, spotting something, quietly slipped away from the commotion and slid into Master's quarters. "Master?" he asked, climbing the stairs to find her in her study.

"Yes, Artorias?" Master Feng questioned, sipping a cup of tea.

"Are you quite sure that choosing Blanca for the Trials was a good idea? Because I'm not sure she has what it takes to win,"

"Oh, I know she doesn't," Feng shook her head. "That isn't why I chose her,"

Artorias blinked. "Then . . why?"

"Because that girl is a stuck-up snob who couldn't learn humility if it slapped her in the face," Feng's calm, measured tone was starkly at odds with her words. "Therefore, that is exactly what I hope will happen to her,"

Artorias blinked. "Pardon?"

"I fully expect Blanca to be one of the first ones eliminated from the Trials, and it is my hope that the experience will be a humbling one for her. With Ariel to console her and make her feel better about her loss, Blanca will come to the realisation that she isn't as strong as she thinks she is. The experience will teach her humility, and I have every confidence that she will come out of these trials, not as an S-Class, but as a better person all the same,"

The Blood wizard nodded, accepting this, but paused, noticing a flaw in Master's suggestion. "Ariel?"

"Well, yes. As much as they quarrel, Ariel and Blanca are firm friends, and I'm certain that Blanca will recognise this and ask Ariel to be her partner. Who else would she choose?" Master questioned.

"Eve," Artorias shook his head.

The guild master blinked. "What?"

"She chose Eve," the S-Class corrected her. "I heard them talking, and apparently after Eve went on that mission with Team Pierce last week, Blanca somehow got it into her head that they allowed that because she's secretly a powerful wizard who's been holding out on her friends. So she picked Eve as her partner,"

"Oh," Feng digested this, considering it and its ramifications.

"DOES THAT GIRL'S STUPIDITY KNOW NO BOUNDS?!" she shrieked.

~P's E~

Meanwhile, high above Fiore, there was a floating island, a chunk of terrain that hovered in the sky. And on this island was a castle, a circular construction of seven stone towers linked by curving walls, all enclosing a compound with another building in the centre. Etched into the stone of the roof, so that the gods in heaven could look down and see it, was a guild mark; a snake with its own tail in its mouth. An ouroboros. Reputed as the signature mark of the dark guild Kairos End.

Inside this building was an octangular hall with eight chairs, each painted a different colour. The northernmost throne was black, and the one to the northeast was red. Following suit, the eastern chair was orange, and it continued through the colours of the rainbow until it reached the violet northwest throne. And all bar one, the blue one that was in the south-west, were occupied.

"Aberforth, End of Saturday. Your report," the man in the northern chair commanded of the Assassin, seated in the indigo western chair.

"It was the strangest thing, sir. I was observing the wizards of Phoenix's Eye as they engaged in a job on Mount Zheng, when this girl showed up next to me. I didn't know who she was or where she'd come from, but she said that she was a Phoenix's Eye wizard. And she knew who I was and which guild I belong to,"

"Really," The man in the black northern chair left his throne and strode into the light, revealing him as being a stooped, elderly man with a wispy moustache and balding grey hair. He was dressed in segmented black armour with red trim, and had a black hood covering his head, and was carrying a long metal rod that had a hand on either end, using it as a walking stick. "Did she tell you anything else?"

"I didn't give her the opportunity, Master. It was immediately obvious to me that anyone who could find out that much and remain unknown to us is most likely too powerful for me to defeat on my own," Aberforth explained.

"So you ran," the man surmised, glaring at him with red eyes, which had black eyeshadow around them that made them look sunken and shadowed.

"Yes, Master. My most humble apologies, Master," the Assassin bowed in his seat.

"Father?" A scantily clad young woman with a leotard that looked to be made of tiger skin and sky blue hair that hung around her shoulders and was seated in the north-west chair, coloured violet, spoke up. "Do go easy on the poor Assassin. He has just had a brush with what may well be powers beyond his comprehension," This was Mordonna, End of Sunday. Known to most people as the daughter of Kairos End's Guild Master.

"Beyond his comprehension, perhaps. But not beyond mine," the man spoke as he returned to his chair. "However, Mordonna, I take your point. You will not face reprisal for this failure, Aberforth, as your otherwise admirable conduct has endeared you to me of late,"

"You are most gracious, sir," the Assassin nodded graciously. "And thank you for your support, Lord Sunday,"

"I disagree. He should die," a macabre voice spoke from the eastern orange throne, and Mordonna tched. "Oh, Eurydice. If we killed everyone who you thought should die, we wouldn't have a guild left,"

"Yeah, Grim Tuesday. You can't just kill everyone," Aberforth agreed.

The other woman, who had a ponytail of violet hair that hung to her waist, unnaturally pale skin, dull red eyes and thin, faint facial features, who wore a black chiton, leather sandals and silver bangles on her wrists, didn't respond, but her dull expression seemed to get colder. This was Eurydice, End of Tuesday.

"Gosh, rude," Mordonna rolled her eyes. "Oi, Fred. Is she like that when you're alone together?" she asked the man seated in the yellow chair. Contrary to the others, Fred looked remarkably average; tousled brown hair, an affable smile, warm green eyes, a yellow shirt and blue pants; he was the spitting image of an ordinary teenager and looked entirely out of place in the macabre setting. Yet evidently, considering how none of the others were bothered by his presence, he knew exactly where he was.

"I wouldn't know," Fred, End of Wednesday, replied. "I've never managed to get her attention," he shrugged.

"Enough," the man in the black throne forestalled all conversation with a word. His gaze focused on the slim man seated in the green chair directly opposite his, and he spoke; "Clockwork, End of Thursday. What do your clocks say?"

"Hi, Sir Thursday! Good to see you out of your workshop!" Aberforth interrupted, only to quiet down at a glare from the Guild Master.

"That now is the time, tick tock tick tock," the man, dressed in green and brown leather armour, with round tinted spectacles that hid his eyes, and short, flat black hair, who was tinkering with some small machine in his lap, spoke without looking up from his project

"Good," The guild master, seated in his black throne, nodded. He cast a quick glance at the man in the red throne to his left; his second-in-command and most favoured servant. His End of Monday. "And what say you?"

"I can assure you, Master. I won't let you down," the man, whose face was shadowed, but with white hair and red markings standing out in the darkness, nodded.

"Well, everyone. We are moving out, and you all know what to do," the black-clad man commanded.

"As you wish, Master Eternity," six voices chorused, before all six of his subordinates left their seats and vanished through doors behind their chairs.

Guild Master Eternity, End of All Days sat and thought to himself quietly. He wasn't worried about losing. Indeed, he'd prepared for this for fifty-six years - he had even opened an interdimensional vortex to the parallel universe of Edolas and stolen a floating island from the alternate world to serve as the mobile base for his guild.

And now, it was time to bring about Phoenix's Eye's end. The Kairos End.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **So! It's the beginning of the S-Class Trials arc! And because I've been endeavouring to make my writing less predictable, I have a few tricks up my sleeve this time around. I hope you all like them. ;)**

 **I'm just going to say that putting Wesley and Lorus together sounded like a good idea on paper. I didn't really consider how . . interesting their speech patterns would make their interactions. But I like it. ^^**

 **So, yes! This was why I brought Hydranoid in; the seventh slot for S-Class trial participant was open, and after realising I had run out of characters to use (yeah, go me - I need Strauss siblings), I realised I had to take desperate measures. But then it hit me; I'd left Alice out (she was originally going to be an aid to Master or something) and pencilled in Tyria as being partnered with Lync. So I just had to make Alice the seventh contestant . . . but why would Lync work with anyone other than his girlfriend? That could only happen if someone even closer to her than him was there to work with her! And there was really only one thing I could do for that to work. XD**

 **Also, if any of you need a brief refresher of Chapter 24, you might remember that it was said that there were four guilds in the Balam Alliance in TGND canon, not three. Oracion Och, Grimoire Heart, Tartaros . . and Kairos End.**

 **Speaking of Kairos End, the identity of Monday is something that might not be revealed for a while. BUT, I have left a couple of hints, enough so that the more perspicacious of my readers will be able to at least make an educated guess. I wonder if anyone will figure it out before the reveal?**

 **Heheheh. Peace.**


	55. OT4: Warrior

Chapter 55: OT4: Warrior (Havana Brown)

 _I am a fighter, eh eh, it's in my DNA_

Pierce, Tyria, Boomer, Grace, Sarph and Eve stand together on a rocky cliff width blue sky behind them. The Phoenix's Eye logo flickers in and out of existence, superimposed over them.

 _Step by step, and brick by brick, nobody stopping me_

Behind them, a plume of lava erupts, and smoke covers the scene.

 _Quit trying to shoot me down, 'cause I'm invincible_

Raya shrieks, dodging bullets as she flies through the air with streaks of fire trailing from her wings, and Pierce and Grace are on her back.

 _I think you made a mistake, I am a warrior_

The Divine Caladrius spreads her wings and rises, shrieking.

 _I stand like a soldier, yeah_

Grace roars, blasting Kroeber into a stack of cages.

 _Strike like a tiger_

Sarph deflects bullets with Solamion, before bashing Juniper with the sword's hilt.

 _I stand like a soldier, yeah_

Tyria and Motormouth struggle against each other, with the Forty-Eight Peg Gear Blitzkrieg and Roller spells.

 _Punch like a champion_

Pierce, in Take Over: Phoenix Soul, blasts Jarod with flame.

 _I'm gonna dance, dance, dance to the beat of my drum_

Jarod and his four generals stand together with an army of grunts behind them. In unison, they tap their right feet three times, spin around and raise their fists.

 _Gonna feel my blood running wild and young_

Team Pierce, with Eve and Artorias and missing Hare, snap their fingers, sweep their right arms across their bodies, and jump up.

 _Gonna dance, dance, dance to the beat of my drum_

Jarod sweeps his arms out, and his guild dashes forwards.

 _Like a warrior_

Jarod cocks his gun.

 _Warrior_

The Phoenix's Eye crest appears, suspended above the town square of Qilin Village, where Severed Tusk is fighting the Phoenixes and the qilins. And then a hole is blown straight through the eye by Jarod's shot.


	56. CT4: Castle On The Hill

Chapter 56: CT4: Castle On The Hill (Ed Sheeran)

As the initial instrumental music plays, the camera looks up into the sky, watching clouds streak across the screen from right to left.

 _When I was eight years old I broke my leg_

Puffing and wheezing, eight-year-old Pierce, carrying Raya as a baby, runs up a hill.

 _I was running from my father and his friends_

Pierce scrambles to the top of the hill and looks back down, seeing the campsite of Severed Tusk beneath him.

 _And tasted the sweet perfume of the mountain grass I rolled down_

He collapsed atop the hill, staring up into the sky, until a shadow falls across him.

 _I was younger then, take me back to when I_

Fifteen-year-old Pierce stands over his younger self, with a mature Raya behind him, and stretches out his hand with the Phoenix's Eye logo printed on it.

 _Found my heart and broke it here_

Eve collapsed against the wall of the Divine Caladrius' shrine, with tears trickling down her cheeks and her fists clenched around her Celestial Keyring.

 _Made friends and lost them through the years_

She looks up to see Pierce, Tyria, Boomer, Sarph, Grace and Kit gathered around her, all grinning, and smiled.

 _And I've not seen the roaring fields in so long, I know I've grown_

Cor stands at the top of the hill on which the Caladrius' shrine is built, looking down at Qilin Village, which is filled with hunters and being torn apart.

 _But I can't wait to go home_

The hunters rippled and vanished as though they were a dream, leaving Qilin Village intact and proud. Cor smiles.

 _I'm on my way_

Pierce, riding Raya, swoops through the air above Qilin Village.

 _Driving at ninety down those country lanes_

Grace, leaping between rifts, and Tyria, with her Jetpack, follow him.

 _Singing to Boomer's music_

The Garuda follows, possessed by Kit and with Boomer, Sarph, Eve and Cor standing in the prow.

 _And I miss the way you make me feel, and it's real_

The wizards all land on a hill, overlooking the Magic Council's prison, silhouetted behind the setting sun.

 _We watched the sun set over the castle on the hill_

The Phoenix's Eye symbol appears in white between them and the prison.

"How do you think he's doing in there?" Raya quietly asked, eyeing Pierce down her beak. Everyone knew who she was talking about.

"You know what, old friend?" Pierce smiled up at his partner. "I really don't care. Come on, everyone," he grinned at his friends, turning and beginning to walk back to the Garuda. "Let's go home,"

A/N

 **A/N**

 **You know, I really feel like this is the perfect way to close the Divine Caladrius arc. Because, above all else, this arc has been about closure. About moving on. About endings, and new beginnings. Peace.**


	57. Diamauros

Chapter 57: Diamauros

Three days later, the seven nominees and their seven partners met in the guild hall.

"S-Class Trials, huh? This is exciting," Tyria grinned, skirting around the topic of last week's kiss, and Pierce reclined on a nearby armchair and nodded, projecting his usual air of nonchalance, however inwardly he was just as enthusiastic.

"Hey, Eve?" The Snow wizard turned to see Ariel looking at her kindly. "You'll be okay without me, right?" Eve nodded. "Don't worry. I'll be fine. Besides, you should be more concerned about yourself; you're going to be missing out on all the fun of the Trials," she pointed out, and Ariel nodded weakly. "Yeah, I'm sure you'll have lots of fun," the water witch said without conviction. Eve could tell that something was bothering her friend, but put it down as just worry and shrugged it off.

"Oi, everyone!" Involuntarily, everyone turned to Blanca, even though they all knew it would most likely be something inane. "I'm the best at competing to be S-Class, so none of you are allowed to be better than me! Got it?"

"Sure, whatever," Totomaru shrugged in a dismissive tone of voice, a sentiment that almost everyone present echoed.

"My apologies, bountiful maiden, but the newly realised hero," At this, Lorus, for of course it was him speaking, swept into an extravagant bow, "will of course be serving his own righteous interests and fighting for his own victory. And if you would oppose me in the pursuit of this righteous goal, then I have no choice but to denounce you as a villainess!" he theatrically declared.

"A villain? How dare you?" Blanca challenged, glaring at him, but Lorus was having none of it. "Oh, have no fear, seductively villainous maiden, I have no doubt that you can be redeemed of your evil ways through the love of a courageous hero devoted to your redemption in a beautiful sub-plot!"

"Oh yeah?" Blanca raised her eyebrows at the illusionist's affable yet smug smile and its implications, before sprouting a devilish smirk, turning and hollering, "Oi, Boomer! Wanna be my courageous, sub-plotting hero?"

She had to stifle a giggle at the way Lorus collapsed to the ground in despair at this denial. Meanwhile, Boomer, thinking that Blanca was being as serious as usual, answered, "If it gets me away from Hare, I'm game for anything!"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Hare, suddenly all up in his face, demanded, and her unwilling partner whimpered, "That you scare me and the only reason you're my partner is because I'm worried about what you'll do to me if I say no,"

"Good,"

"My, you two are awfully close to each other," Pierce dryly observed, and Hare, realising the implications, frantically jumped away from Boomer. "That meant nothing! No attraction! Just fear!" she frantically blustered in Totomaru's general direction.

~P's E~

At the publishing offices of Sorcerer Weekly Magazine, Penny Prince suddenly sneezed.

"Are you alright?" Jason asked, and his blond co-worker nodded. "I'm fine. I just have this strange feeling like there's somewhere I should be right now,"

~P's E **(if you don't know what that was about, go over to the Filler Episodes story and read the second chapter!)** ~

"Ahem!" The fourteen wizards all turned to see Master Feng, flanked by Sarph, Artorias, Garrotte and a man who Tyria vaguely recognised standing before them. The unfamiliar person was slim, clad in a white robe that hung around his slender frame, with a wide-brimmed straw hat atop his head, which was coated by a mane of spiky silver hair. Blue eyes twinkled from beneath the hat, and he had a belt around his waist with several hooks, on which hung a teapot and several cups.

"Where'd Faraday go?" Pierce questioned, and the Master sighed. "She had to leave on urgent business," she shrugged helplessly. "No matter. We can conduct the Trials without her. Does anyone else have questions we should address before we go?"

"Who's that?" Alice asked, indicating the other man.

"That's Sensho. He's a wizard who created Tea Magic, and the guild's medic. I usually ask him to come along on the S-Class Trials just in case someone needs medical attention," Feng explained.

After a moment, it was evident that no more questions were forthcoming, and the Master continued. "Now. Is everyone ready to leave for the trial site?"

The whole group made noises of affirmation.

"Good. To the Garuda!" Feng declared, striding through the crowd and -

"Master, wait. The Garuda doesn't have the capacity to carry nineteen people _and_ all the equipment you've loaded into it. By my calculations, the limit is sixteen," Sarph forestalled her.

Feng paused, and frowned. "That's unfortunate . . ." She trailed off, thinking, but Boomer raised a hand. "The Sonic Boom can seat three people. I can take two others and drive there separately,"

"Good," the guild master nodded, accepting this. "Hare, you should definitely go with Boomer . . . but who else?"

Lync watched the proceedings, before casting a sideways glance at Alice. He knew he shouldn't have been mad about her wanting to spend time with Hydranoid over him - she saw him a lot less, after all - but it still smarted. "I'll go with them too," he declared, stepping forwards.

"That's all good, then. The rest of us will fly in the Garuda," the master nodded.

Boomer blinked, and blanched. "But I was trying to get away from Hare for a bit . . ." he mumbled, before giving in.

~P's E~

Contrary to Boomer's expectations, the drive to the ruins of Diamauros was uneventful. Hare mostly remained quiet, though that might have been due to the fact that Lync was squashed into the back seat next to her, ready to match her barb for barb if she spoke up.

Either way, the three arrived at Diamauros in the middle of the afternoon, well ahead of the Garuda; in spite of having to take a less direct route by virtue of needing to navigate roads, the Sonic Boom was several items faster than the Garuda, or indeed, most any airship.

"Wow. I thought the guild hall was a dump, but this place takes the cake," Lync observed as the Sonic Boom cruised down burnt brick roads, between stone skeletons and the burnt, decayed remnants of beams. They were surrounded, as far as the eye could see, by ruins . . . however, Boomer and Hare could feel some unearthly magic power, like none they had ever felt before, radiating from their surroundings.

"Lync. Turn on your Gauntlet," Boomer suggested.

"Okay? Gauntlet: Power Strike," Lync nodded, switching on the device on his left forearm. "Why?"

"Can you feel it?" Hare asked, the usual disdain in her tone temporarily absent, bathed in the power emanating throughout Diamauros. "The strange energy that permeates this place?"

"Yeah, now that you mention it, something is weird about these ruins," Lync nodded. But none of them had any answers, so they put it out of their minds and continued onwards.

"Master said we're meeting at the old guild hall. Or its ruin, anyway," Boomer recalled. "She said it was in the town square, in the middle of town, and we couldn't miss it," he added, keeping his eyes out for debris to steer around as the Sonic Boom drove through the destroyed town. "This place makes Ghoulia look homely," he shivered, shaking his head.

Eventually they arrived in the centre of Diamauros; a large square with a circular section of scorched earth that might once have been a flower bed, with the jagged remnants of a fountain lying nearby.

Even without considering the aura surrounding them, Hare was so affected by the destruction that her usual veil of disdain was temporarily lifted again. "Gods," she muttered with a bewildered frown, "What _happened_ to this place?"

"Natsu Dragneel went to town?" Boomer weakly joked, but the humour fell on deaf ears and Hare, taking the suggestion seriously, shook her head. "No. Not even Natsu Dragneel would be so . . thorough,"

"Hey! There's something over there!" Lync hissed, and the three immediately quietened, following the Vestal's pointing finger to the largest building in the square.

The building in question was in ruins, even more so than the rest of the town; twin, emancipated towers, a large area that would have once been a great, central hall with a couple of walls still standing; and yet enough remained of it that it was immediately recognisable for what it had once been. However, the most evident proof of the building's identity was a massive slab of granite lying in the entrance, with an eye encircled by feathers painted onto it. They were looking at the former guild hall of the Phoenix's Eye wizarding guild.

And there was a figure wrapped in a cloak emerging from the ruins and striding towards them. The three wizards tensed, and Lync's finger hovered over the activation button for his Gauntlet, while Boomer's hand hovered over the Sonic Boom's controls that activated the weapons systems - and then a familiar voice reassured them. "Boomer! It's good to see you, eheheh!"

The Sound wizard grinned and hopped out of the car. "Astro?" he questioned, disbelieving, even as he ran towards the figure. "You left your bunker?"

"Eh . . well, not quite, dear boy," Astro admitted, reaching up and pulling back his cloak to reveal a metal face and inhumanly thin neck. Boomer slowed, immediately recognising the robot for what it was. "Oh. So you _didn't_ leave your bunker,"

"Sorry, boyo, but you know I can't. If I leave, then all my secrets would be vulnerable. Anyone could walk in and steal them," the Astro-bot shrugged, and Boomer nodded. He understood his friend's paranoia, but couldn't help muttering, "Vulnerable except for the state-of-the-art security systems that surround it,"

"But, of course, I could hardly miss you making your claim to the title of S-Class! I'm sure you'll do me proud," The robot lacked a face, but Boomer was certain that, buried in his bunker, on the other end of the connection, Astro was smiling.

"Well, if I do, it'll be all thanks to you and your machines," Boomer pointed out with a chuckle.

"So? Sarph wouldn't have made S-Class without that sword of his, now would he?" Astro reasoned. "There's no shame in having objects to augment your strength,"

"Fair enough," Boomer nodded.

"So, you're the infamous Astro," Lync spoke, approaching him. "Good to see some tech. I was starting to think Fiore was locked in the X500s,"

"I do pride myself on my skills," Astro nodded.

"Good," the Brawler nodded, before looking around. ". . . Where's Hare?"

"She probably went to explore," Boomer sighed.

"Well, I do hope she won't run afoul of any of the traps I set up prematurely," Astro mused. "That would be irritating,"

There was a sudden scream and Hare returned in a flash, wheezing. "There's a . . mob . . . of giant . . . . carrots over on . . . the hill," she gasped, getting her breath back.

Lync cocked an eyebrow. "Giant, hostile carrots? Sick," he grinned.

"I might have spiced up Master's plans a bit," Astro shamelessly conceded. "Anyway. I've set up our camp in the old guild building, with everything the whole party will need to camp out for a week if necessary," he finished.

"Good. Now we just need to wait for the rest of the gang to get here . . . which probably won't be until tomorrow morning," Boomer recalled, shaking his head. "I suggest we all settle in, and don't stray too far from the campsite. Otherwise the carrots may return," he suggested with a smile.

Hare tched and didn't respond.

"Wait, isn't a hare a kind of rabbit?" Astro questioned with a suggestive intonation. "So shouldn't you be able to eat carrots for breakfast?"

"I'm leaving now," Hare growled, and dashed away . . in the opposite direction of the hill where she had encountered the carrots.

~P's E~

That night, the group settled down in sleeping mats. Astro had provided a heater and set up their supplies in a section of the ruins where there was still a few chunks of roof remaining.

Boomer and Hare were out like a light, and Astro's telepresence droid powered off as soon as they had, but Lync couldn't get comfortable on the singed stone under his sleeping bag. No matter how he arranged his coat.

And then he heard it.

A faint, lilting melody, sung in a sweet, high-pitched voice, echoed through the ruins, singing a song that Lync didn't know. Feeling somewhat entranced, he pulled himself out of his sleeping bag, grabbed his Vexos cloak and pulled it on over his blue pyjamas, before strapping his Gauntlet to his wrist and walking out of the campsite, searching for the source of the music.

There was nothing in the town square, and Lync strode past the broken piece of rock that bore the Phoenix's Eye sigil, making his way towards the destroyed fountain.

Standing near it, the Vestal looked in every direction for any sign of the sweet song's source, and the ruined condition of the buildings around him enabled him to see much farther - _there_!

Three buildings into a suburban district to his right, he spotted a glimmer of white, moving on the other side of an empty window frame. His goal in sight, Lync ran across the square and into the ruins, searching for whatever he had seen. "Oi! Who's there?" he called, but there was no response.

He reached the window frame and looked around, before spotting something vanishing through a doorway on the other side of a dusty road. Lync picked up the pace, and his cloak billowed around him as he crossed the drive and entered the destroyed house, before casting around.

There was no roof to the house, but a set of stairs led up to the remains of what had once been a second storey, and the aviation wizard, still listening to the omnipresent singing, realised it was coming from above him. He forced himself up the stairs, looking left and right.

And then he saw her.

There was a girl, about Grace's age, in a plain white dress with dark brown hair that hung to her chest in two bangs and cascaded around her back, with bare feet, facing away from him and standing on the edge of a section of the house where the floor had broken away. She was standing on the edge of the gap, with her palms outwards and facing him.

Lync watched, immediately knowing that this girl was the source of the song. He was about to try to get her attention, but suddenly she moved. Not much; most of her body stayed still, but her hands rotated so that her palms were facing forward and Lync could see the backs of her hands.

He gasped.

Printed, in white ink, on the back of the girl's left hand, was the immediately-recognisable guild mark of a Phoenix's Eye wizard.

And the noise had attracted the girl's attention. She turned, stepping backwards as she did, and Lync caught the briefest glimpse of green eyes, a petite nose and a mouth with thin lips . . . and then she fell.

The young man's eyes widened, watching the girl fall off the ruined floor and disappear down below. That was at least an eight-foot drop. He rushed forwards, worried, and carefully crouched over the edge, bracing himself to see something ugly.

Nothing. There was no girl, no blood. Even the song was dying away, and within seconds it had stopped.

Rushing back down the stairs and around the ruin, Lync reached the area where the mysterious girl had fallen and scoured it for any trace of her. But there was nothing to be found except an irritated dung beetle crouching in a corner.

Eventually, the Brawler accepted that, whatever he had seen, it was gone, and started making his way back to the camp.

~P's E~

"Good morning!" The three wizards woke to find Master Feng looming over them. Astro's droid had already left, no doubt to aid in the set-up. "Sleeping in? We can't have that!" she declared. "Up and at them, all three of you!"

Lync, Hare and Boomer rapidly clambered out of their sleeping bags and scrambled to get changed out of their pyjamas.

"Good. Now that you're all ready, we can begin the Trials!" Feng barked, leading onwards.

Lync rushed to catch up with the guild master. "Hey, old hag! Something . . weird happened last night,"

Feng cocked an eyebrow. She was, by now, used to Lync disrespecting her, but never before had he felt the need to personally seek an audience with her. Something must have rattled him to precipitate this encounter. "Explain,"

Lync promptly recapped what he had experienced the previous night, finishing with; "- and then she fell off the ruin and vanished. What was that? Was it a ghost?"

Master Feng, though, seemed stuck on the description the Vestal had given of the girl. "Dark brown hair and green eyes, you say," she muttered. "It couldn't be . ."

"Couldn't be what?" Lync pressed, but Master shook her head. "I don't know. Maybe it really was a ghost . . or maybe something stranger," she frowned to herself. "Lync, I want you to keep a very careful eye out for this girl, on the off chance you should see her again. If you do, you can investigate. Try to talk to her, if she'll listen. But under no circumstances are you to _touch_ her, alright?"

"Why not?" he demanded in response.

"Because sometimes precautions must be taken," Feng enigmatically replied.

The tech wizard was confused, but realised he wouldn't get anything more out of his guild master, and nodded. "Okay, old fart. If you say so," he accepted.

"Good. But try not to think about it, alright? After all, we're here for the Trials. Not to disturb ancient graves,"

Presently, they reached the far end of the town square, where the Garuda had landed. Lync, Boomer and Hare rejoined the rest of the participants, while Sarph, Artorias and Garrotte stood with Master.

"What's with this place?" Alice wondered, purple lights playing in her hands as she reached out with her Amaterasu magic in a futile effort to discern the nature of the strange energy that permeated Diamauros.

"It's like this whole town is inside a bubble of reality where things aren't quite the way they're supposed to be," Grace agreed with a shiver, and Pierce wrapped a consoling arm around her shoulders.

"Is everyone ready?" Feng demanded, cutting off the conversation, and the trialgoers nodded with various noises of affirmation. "Excellent," she smiled. "I take it the seven contestants all still have their feathers?"

Pierce's flute appeared in his hand, revealing that he had tied the feather to the end of it. "Present," he nodded.

Tyria checked her ponytail, which she had braided the red feather into. It stood out as a streak of crimson against the electric blue of her hair. "Check,"

Boomer opened his boombox's disc player - which he never used, as all of his music was digital - and showed that his feather was nestled within it. "I'm cool," he nodded.

Lorus opened his coat, showing that he had bound his feather into a pendant of crystallised light around his neck. "The hero would never lose such an important item,"

Totomaru drew his katana, which now had a red feather braided into its leather handgrip. "Present and accounted for,"

Blanca grinned and raised her hand, showing that she'd knotted her feather into a ring around her finger. "All good!"

Alice looked around, before producing her feather from her pocket. "I, uh, didn't really have anything important to attach it to," she admitted.

"No matter. That's good," Feng nodded with a smile. "Now! The first part of the Trials! Hidden throughout the ruins of the town are several golden keys. All of you must find one and return to our campsite by sundown, or you will be eliminated from the Trials!"

"Piece of cake," Tyria shrugged. "Just finding a key? What's the big deal?"

"Well, of course, there are the traps that have been set up all over town, though those are more of a hindrance than anything. The 'big deal' is that there are _only six_ of these keys," Feng explained with a smile.

"Only six?" Boomer repeated.

"So, even if we find all of the keys, at least one team is guaranteed to get eliminated during the first round," Totomaru surmised.

"Indeed," Feng smiled darkly. "Well, what are you all waiting for? Let the X785 Phoenix's Eye S-Class Trials begin!"

A/N

 **A/N**

 **So, I have one goal (other than furthering the plot, of course) with this arc; give the more minor characters screen-time. I'm planning to use this arc to give the likes of Lorus and Alice and Blanca and Lync some more character development. Because they all deserve it. Peace!**


	58. The Key To Success

Chapter 58: The Key To Success

The seven teams immediately separated, each running in different directions in search of one of the six keys.

"Also, try not to destroy anything much! I've been working on getting these ruins certified as a historical site and the last six months' negotiations will be ruined if you make this place much more of a dump!" Feng hollered.

"So, Master. What should we be doing?" Sarph asked.

"For now, wait. I won't need you three until the second stage of the Trials," Feng commanded, before pausing thoughtfully. "If you want, you can look around the ruins. As long as you don't interfere with the first stage of the trial,"

"You got it!" Sarph nodded enthusiastically, manifesting his wings - at which Garrotte gave an involuntary twitch - and taking wing.

"Are you alright?" Artorias questioned, and Garrotte nodded. "Ah'm fine. 'T just always itches a littl' when 'e uses mah Aera,"

~P's E~

"Grace? How's finding the key looking?" Pierce asked, and the air around the Reality Dragon Slayer rippled, as she closed her eyes and screwed them up. "I'm not sensing anything," she shrugged. "Though if would help if we knew exactly what we were looking for,"

"Nothing doing," Pierce shrugged.

"I guess we're doing this the old-fashioned way," Grace nodded, eyeing a nearby boulder, which suddenly sunk into the ground and vanished, revealing that there was no key behind it. Above them, the boulder fell out of a hole in the sky, dropping into another rift directly beneath it which returned it to its original position, and they moved on.

"The old-fashioned way. Right," Pierce nodded with a wry grin as Grace repeated her trick with another piece of debris.

~P's E~

"What are we doing?" Totomaru asked, as Fleur dragged him towards the guild building. The mute wizard made a key shape with her hands, before pointing to the massive rock with the Phoenix's Eye logo on it near the entrance.

"I see. You're saying that Master is most likely to have hidden the keys in important places, like the old guild building. And there's nowhere better to look in that case than right underneath the guild symbol," Totomaru nodded, following his partner's logic. With that, he generated purple fire in his hands, and threw a rope of it around a jagged stone spike, where it promptly trailed down and split into four, wrapping around the slab of granite. Screwing his eyes shut and gritting his teeth, the fire wizard pulled on the impromptu flaming pulley and slowly lifted the slab of rock off the ground enough for Fleur to peer underneath.

The Petal Mage straightened and shook her head, and Totomaru released the rock, letting it fall back into position. "Nothing? Damn, but I guess it was worth a try,"

Beckoning, Fleur led her friend onwards into the ruins of the guild hall, still convinced that there had to be at least one key there somewhere.

~P's E~

Alice carefully balanced herself on top of the ruined fountain in the centre of the square, aware that Master Feng and Artorias were watching her.

"What are you doing?" Hydranoid asked, and Alice raised an arm as an Amaterasu Formula Seal appeared in her hand. "I'm casting a detection spell," she muttered, manifesting a second with her free hand and manoeuvring it into position opposite the first, then generating two more for a square. Finally, she added three to the very top, all stacked above each other. "Amaterasu Formula Seven!" she invoked, and the black/purple magic circles all span and glowed, before detonating.

Hydranoid flinched as they did, which caused him to lose his balance on Alice's shoulder and fall downwards into the fountain. He tucked and rolled - literally, collapsing back into a ball, which sent him spilling down into the bottom of the fountain and into a drainage pipe.

The Magic dispersed, and Alice looked confused. "That's odd . . it said a key was right on top of me," she mused, before realising something was missing. "Hydranoid? Where did you go?" she asked.

"Down here!" "I fell into the fountain!" "But there's something blocking the pipe!" Hydranoid's three voices echoed from underneath her, and, leaping down, Alice crouched and peered into the pipe. "Hydranoid! You found a key!"

"Well, that's just lovely," the Darkus's central voice grumbled. "Damned keys made out of damned hard metal," his gravelly voice agreed, and his nasally voice chimed in, "We just couldn't have landed on a nice soft pillow,"

Alice reached into the pipe and fished out both her Bakugan partner and the key he had landed on. "Does this mean we win?" Hydranoid asked, and Alice nodded. "I think it does,"

They immediately brought the key aback to Master Feng near the Garuda, who took one glance at the key and smiled. "Well done. I was hoping you'd make it through," she smiled proudly. "Now, the next round won't begin until tonight . . eh. Go relax or something," she suggested.

"Oh, okay," Alice nodded.

"I suggest we take a look at what's over to the east. I'm detecting some interesting energies over there," Hydranoid suggested, and Alice nodded. "Sure, let's go,"

~P's E~

Boomer strode down a street. "Hare? Where'd you go?"

With a green blur, the Speed wizard appeared in front of him, holding a bronze key in her hand. "Speed magic has advantages," she eloquently informed him, and, given that she had just searched an entire quadrant of the town in about three minutes, having circumvented several traps on the way, she felt she was entitled to a little bragging.

"Whoa - that's great! We're through to the next round!" Boomer grinned, taking the key from her hand.

"Yeah, great. Now I'm off to ensure that skank doesn't do anything with my Totomaru," Hare hissed and dashed away.

Boomer watched her go thoughtfully, before considering the key in his hands. "I wonder what this is for?" he questioned as he began making his way back to camp..

~P's E~

"Has Scarabus found anything?" Blanca asked Eve, who shrugged. Around them, the thousands of beetles that comprised her Celestial Spirit were searching through the ruins and rubble.

"Uh . . yes?" Eve nodded, gesturing at the debris and junk that Scarabus was heaping around her. "No keys, though,"

"Well, of course not!" Blanca fumed. "I don't know what I was thinking when I suggested using your Spirits to help search. Obviously, since I'm the best at finding keys, only I should be looking for them!"

With that, the white-haired Plastic wizard strutted off, her bone white shirt and beige jeans rippling in the wind, and she looked around as though she expected a key to walk up to her and beg her for the right to be used by her to complete the Trials.

Eve watched her go, and decided that she definitely needed an attitude adjustment . . . not that she'd probably ever work up the nerve to tell her that. But . . maybe she'd politely ask someone to pass it on anonymously?

There was a sudden shriek, and the Celestial/Snow wizard watched as a sinkhole opened under her partner's feet and she fell in. "Eve? Don't help me! I'm best at getting out of sinkholes, so only I get to get me out of a sinkhole!" Blanca called.

~P's E~

Tyria and Lync strolled through the northern section of Diamauros. "Hey, that building over there looks less ruined than most," Lync pointed out, gesturing towards a construction made of sun-baked, brown stone with a tall spire above the entrance. A circular hole showed that there had once been a clock atop the tower, and most of the walls looked intact.

"Let's check it out," Tyria agreed, and the two rushed towards the church, and strode through the emancipated doorway.

They looked around, finding themselves in a large, roofless hall, with a faded painting taking up the entire back wall. "I think this might have been a church once," the Electrian mused, and the Vestal nodded.

Suddenly, the door swung shut behind them, and the two wizards turned and stared at it. "Uh," Lync blanched.

There was a sudden rustling, and the two turned back to the wall - just as a massive form fell out of the sky and landed in front of them, before rising and glaring at them with four glowing red eyes. The monster was evidently mechanical, with four hydraulic legs supporting a central platform, upon which a torso with two cannons rested, and a head that was really just four eyes attached to the shoulders with a ball joint, and all painted with a crimson and grey colour scheme with a large blue 'A' on its chest.

"Hello, unfortunate trialgoers!" Astro's voice echoed from the machine. "I see you've run afoul of my Ast-robot Demon Beast Preceptrampler! That's what you get for trespassing on sacred ground!"

"Is he serious? Aren't we supposed to be here?" Lync asked, and Tyria shrugged. "I think he's just hamming it up for the Trial,"

"However, if you can defeat my Preceptrampler, then you will find a Trial Key in the bell tower behind you. But that's a pretty big 'if', heh heh," Astro chuckled. "Good luck!"

With that, the Preceptrampler let out an unearthly mechanical shriek and raised its cannons, which began to glow.

"TechType: Forcefield!" Tyria commanded, and a blue energy shield enveloped herself and Lync just in time to absorb the brunt of two blasts of red energy. And then Lync was pressing his hand to the device on his arm and commanding; "Gauntlet: Power Strike!" As soon as his Gauntlet was glowing green and powering up his magic, he went, dashing out from the spherical force field and charging towards the Preceptrampler droid, invoking, "Airnvention: Rockets!" As missiles with handles attached to the sides appeared in both of his hands, Lync let them carry him forwards to deliver a smashing blow to the core of the machine. Letting go of his spells and kicking off, the resulting explosion launched him, backwards, into the air, and the Vestal landed in a crouch near Tyria.

As the smoke cleared, the Preceptrampler was revealed to have been blown against the rear wall and was sparking and twitching.

"That wasn't too hard," Tyria observed. "Just one more good blow should do it," she declared, before adding, "TechType: Tectonics!" Her right arm morphed into a heavy club, and she advanced, preparing to launch a haymaker at the machine while keeping her force-field active just in case the robot decided to launch another laser. And it did, the right-hand cannon fixing on her and launching a blast of red energy, but her shield shrugged it off. The tech wizard gritted her teeth, feeling the drain on her magic reserves, but it ended soon enough and, satisfied that another attack was not incoming, she lashed out with her right arm and bashed in the Preceptrampler's chestplate.

With a hiss, the robot whined and died.

"You know, I'm starting to think that calling this a trial might be misleading," Lync pointed out as Tyria ended her spells, and the Electrian nodded. "You keep an eye on it, just in case it gets back up. I'll go get that key. TechType: Jetpack!" she commanded, and as her hover pack unfolded from her back, she took off, soaring up to the ruined clock tower.

Lync watched the robot as, behind him, Tyria climbed into the tower and immediately found the key lying in the centre of a cleared space. "Ka-ching!" she grinned, pocketing it in her dark tan combat pants and flying back down. "Alright, let's clear out," she suggested as her Jetpack vanished and the door swung open behind them.

Lync strode ahead, and Tyria was about to follow him, but her stomach rumbled. "Give me a sec. I, uh, want to take a closer look at that robot's lasers,"

"Upgrading your ranged arsenal? About time," the Vestal called. "Take all the time you need!"

Reassured that she wouldn't be interrupted, Tyria dashed back up to the robot and pulled off one of the panels, before tearing out a circuitboard and taking a bite out of it. "Silicon. Astro has good taste," she reflected, tucking in to curb her hunger.

~P's E~

Grace sniffed. "Hey, I think I've got something! I smell bronze!"

"Yeah?" Since learning Take Over magic, Pierce had developed a greater understanding of what Grace meant when she said that she could detect scents that were usually untraceable for human noses. Therefore he had no doubts whatsoever as Grace, following her nose, rushed towards an archway that led into what looked like it might once have been a vineyard.

"It's here somewhere - there!" Grace noticed, prising a bronze ring out of the dirt, revealing that it was attached to one of the keys. "Score!" she declared, tossing it to Pierce.

"Great work," Pierce grinned, affectionately ruffling Grace's hair, and the Dragon Slayer grinned.

Then, suddenly, the floor underfoot dropped out beneath them like a massive platform, sending the two wizards tumbling down into an abyss - until Grace tore open a hole in reality beneath the two of them, making it unnecessarily wide to ensure that they were both caught, and linked it to another rift that spat them out on the street outside.

Pierce, spitting dust out of his mouth, picked himself up and looked back into the bottomless pit the yard had become from the safety of the archway they had previously passed through. "Nice save," he complimented Grace.

"Yeah. There probably would have been a monster or something at the bottom," Grace agreed.

"Really? Now I kind of want to go take a look . . naah, not worth it. Let's head back," the Tamer decided.

~P's E~

"You know what she's trying to do," Hydranoid questioned. "Don't you?"

"Yes, I do," Alice nodded. "Master thinks that participating in the Trial will give me enough motivation to let _him_ out,"

"Does it?" her partner's nasally voice asked, and the Brawler shook her head. "Definitely not. Not for an insignificant game like this,"

"Are you still going to try to win, though?" Hydranoid wondered.

"I don't know that I should. What do you think?" Alice looked down at him, thoughtful. "I'm not going to change my stance on fighting just because of a silly title, and I know some of the other wizards would be better at being S-Class than me," she sighed.

"But it would be disrespectful to the Phoenix's Eye creed to give any less than your best," Hydranoid reasoned.

"Wow. You've only been here a few days and you've already learnt the guild creed?" Alice's eyes widened, impressed.

"Well," Hydranoid pulled a disproportionately large pamphlet out of seemingly nowhere and held it between his wings. "Those pamphlets they give out at the bar are very helpful,"

"You've been talking to Preyas, haven't you?" Alice chuckled.

"Yes. The damned fish just won't leave me alone," Hydranoid sighed.

"Well, anyway. I'm not going to go all out, and I'm not going to let _him_ go all out for me. It just isn't worth it," Alice finished.

~P's E~

A little while later, as the sun began to sink, Pierce and Grace emerged onto a main road that would take them back to the town square. As they did, they spotted Tyria and Lync a ways ahead of them.

"Hey Tyria! Hey Lync!" Grace shouted enthusiastically before Pierce could decide whether it would be better to get her - _their_ attention or leave them in peace.

Lync immediately stopped and turned, grinning. "Oh, hey! Find a key yet?" With a moment's hesitation, Tyria followed suit.

With a couple of seconds' sprinting, the siblings caught up. "Yep," Grace beamed, gesturing to Pierce, who withdrew the bronze key they had rescued from the fossilised vineyard.

"Same here," Tyria hesitatingly nodded at the Dragon Slayer, producing her own bronze key.

"Cool," the greenette grinned back.

There was a moment of silence as Tyria avoided Pierce's gaze. The tension was palpable.

Lync rolled his eyes. "Hey, Grace? Let's go find the others. I think these two need some alone time," he declared, striding away down the road. The younger girl giggled and nodded, skipping after him. "You got it!"

"Wh - but . ." Protests died on Tyria's lips as she registered the Tamer raising an eyebrow at her. "Uh . . hey," she weakly muttered.

Pierce stepped forwards, and, on instinct, Tyria stepped back. Blinking, he remained where he was, considering the motion. That indicated fear . . but why would she be afraid of him? Unless it wasn't him she was afraid of, but what he represented . . "Tyria? You've been acting strange all week. Is something wrong?" he gently asked.

"No, no, nothing's wrong, everything's just fine," the Electrian reassured him, a little too hastily.

A sudden certainty gripped Pierce. "Is this about the kiss?"

"No, don't be silly. Why would I care about . . that," Tyria trailed off, unable to meet his gaze.

His gaze softened, and he stepped forwards, and this time, he successfully closed the distance to his teammate. "Tyria?"

She shyly looked up at his face, and Pierce knew that no amount of talking would sort this mess out, when too much talking had caused it to begin with.

This time, he instigated the kiss, wrapping his arms around her shoulders and gently caressing her neck. After a moment, Tyria reciprocated, reaching up and rubbing his shoulder blades, leaning up into the contact. Her breath smelt like silicon.

Finally, they broke away again, hazel eyes meeting electric blue. "Look me in the eye and tell me you didn't enjoy that," the blond gently challenged.

"I can't," Tyria immediately admitted.

"Then what's not to like?" Pierce replied.

There was a moment of silence as the girl thought this over. What wasn't to like about this? About _any_ of this?

"After the Trials," Tyria muttered, taking a step away. "We can't do this now, not when we're going against each other in something like the S-Class Trials,"

Pierce sighed, knowing she was right. "Yeah, that's fair," he admitted. "I'll wait,"

"Thank you," she smiled back at him, and in that moment, something passed between them, something unsaid that could never be taken back.

"We should go find the others," Tyria finally resolved, and Pierce nodded. "Yeah. Let's,"

~P's E~

Meanwhile, Lorus and Wesley were wandering through the wreckage of Diamauros. "Have you seen anything, he asked, not really expecting an answer in the affirmative," Wesley pseudo-questioned.

"Though he offers his most sincere apologies, the hero has yet to locate the object of his search. However, he must comment that he finds his travelling companion's idiosyncrasies most enjoyable and amusing," Lorus shook his head with a smile.

"I'm going to assume that was a compliment, he shrugged uncertainly," Wesley replied.

There was a sudden nose from a distance away, immediately alerting the two older wizards. "What was that, he asked, suddenly on alert!" Wesley gasped.

"I am uncertain, but it sounded like someone is in need of our aid! And this newly minted hero may not know much about the business of being a hero, but he is certain that it is the duty of any good-quality hero to aid those in need!" Lorus declared, making to rush forwards, but Wesley caught the cuff of his cloak. "Wait, it could be a trap, he warned, a note of urgency in his voice,"

"Perhaps, but is it not possible that some traps might offer the keys we seek as rewards for overcoming their challenges?" Lorus questioned, and Wesley mulled this over. "I suppose you have a point, he reluctantly admitted,"

"Excellent! Then this hero declares that he and his aid shall spring every trap they should encounter and succeed by the skin of their teeth in a suitably heroic fashion!" Lorus declared, rushing forwards. "Onwards, hapless companion!" he commanded, charging through the ruins towards the source of the scream.

However, what they discovered was not a trap. Instead, a boy with brown hair, wearing a yellow shirt and blue shorts, was being menaced by a massive mechanical serpent. He was obviously the one who had screamed.

Suddenly, the snake froze up, before exploding into pieces as white crystals tore their way out of it. Wesley rushed towards the boy, while Lorus admired his handiwork. "That is what Astro gets for using light-emitting diodes in his inventions' circuitboards," he smirked.

"Are you alright, he asked in concern?" Wesley questioned, looking down at the boy beneath him, who stared up at him with nervous green eyes. "Uhhhhh . . ."

"Do not mind my hapless companion," Lorus swept in front of Wesley, twirling his cape in what was probably, in his mind at least, a heroic manner. "Are you injured? The hero would be crushed if someone were to be hurt on his watch,"

The boy blinked, no less confused. "Uhhhhh . . ."

"I do believe he might have taken a blow to the head, he whispered, concerned," Wesley pointed out, leaning over the illusionist's shoulder.

"Oh dear," Lorus sighed. "Can you stand?" Wordlessly, the boy rose to his feet, before staggering, and the illusion mage caught him, letting him lean on his shoulder. "Come, the hero shall take you back to his friends' camp!" Lorus declared, guiding him back the way they had come.

"What about the Trial?" Wesley asked.

"No matter! A true hero never denies aid to a person in need! We can continue the trial after helping this unfortunate man!" Lorus retorted. "Tell me, young adventurer. What is your name?"

"Who, me?" the boy sleepily asked. "My name - oh! I know this one! I think! Uh . ." he suddenly crowed, obviously not in full possession of his mental faculties.

"It's Fred!" the boy finally declared, and Lorus nodded to himself, accepting this. "Well, the hero thinks it to be a pleasure to meet you, Fred," he nodded.

Neither Lorus nor Wesley noticed, but Fred darkly smiled.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **Somewhat choppy chapter, but needs must and all that.**

 **People who are familiar with the Bakugan anime will be aware of what Alice has been talking about. If you aren't, don't feel like you have to go online to find out or anything. You'll probably enjoy it more if you're surprised. ^^ The reveal's only a couple of chapters away, anyway.**

 **And Tyria and Pierce are finally going somewhere! Yay! Peace!**


	59. Incoming

Chapter 59: Incoming

"Oh dear," Master Feng observed as Lorus and Wesley deposited Fred on the ground near the Garuda. "What happened?"

"I think he's an adventurer or something. He got caught in one of Astro's traps, Wesley explained with a shrug," the Ball wizard commented.

"An adventurer, you say?" Master Feng mused. "Is he a guild wizard?"

"The hero thinks it unlikely, or else he surely would have used magic. Though, the hero must say that he has little experience with such things," Lorus mused thoughtfully.

Artorias appeared nearby, followed hastily by Sensho. "You two get back to the Trial. We can take care of this,"

"Very well," Lorus accepted. "Onwards to heroic adventure!" he declared, leading Wesley away.

Feng watched them go, before turning her attention back to the unconscious boy as Artorias and Sensho picked him up by arms and legs. "This is unexpected, I have to say," she mused, following them as they carried him onto the Garuda.

"I agree. To think that a stranger would just randomly turn up in the middle of our Trial. It's unbelievable," Sensho mused.

Artorias nodded in a deadpan. "I agree. I don't believe it at all,"

"Good, so I'm not the only one who's suspicious," Master Feng nodded. "If only Kit wasn't off with Pierce, we could ask him to sneakily spy on this boy," she commented.

Carefully, the three brought their cargo below decks and dumped the boy on one of the Garuda's interior beds. Sensho immediately bustled off to fetch his medical supplies. "Artorias? Can you mind him for the day?"

"Of course, master. But what about tonight? I'll need to be out helping with the Trials," Artorias pointed out in his soft-spoken voice.

"Only six of the teams will progress to the second round. I'll just ask whoever loses to hang around and watch him," she shrugged.

"And if that's Blanca and Eve?" the Blood wizard skeptically asked, folding his arms.

Feng blinked, suddenly realising the flaw in her plans. "Then I'll tell Blanca that this is her opportunity to prove that she's best at watching random strangers. And if that doesn't work, I'll get one of Astro's robots in here,"

"Now _that's_ a plan I can agree with," Artorias nodded.

Satisfied, Feng left to return to waiting outside just as Sensho returned.

As the Guild Master emerged outdoors once again, she looked up st the sky, which was turning overcast. "It looks like a storm's brewing,"

"Please don't say that," Feng turned to see that Boomer had just arrived, clutching a key. "Storms remind me a bit too much of Regykraeon,"

"Don't worry, Boomer," Her voice took on a somewhat motherly tone as she affectionately regarded who she had always thought of as one of her brats. "I'm sure this one won't be a problem,"

"I hope you're right, master," the teenage mixmaster nodded.

"If it makes you feel any better, the second part of the Trials is underground," Feng explained, and Boomer visibly brightened at this. "Oh yeah? Awesome!"

~P's E~

A couple of hours passed, and soon the sun was setting, casting colourful auras onto the storm clouds above. Pierce, Grace, Tyria, Lync, Boomer, Alice and Hydranoid were gathered, passing the time and waiting for the other groups to return.

"Who do you think made it?" Tyria wondered.

"And where's Hare?" Boomer grumbled.

"You should not have let her pressure you into teaming up with her," Lync sagely reflected.

"Have you ever tried standing up to her?" the Sound wizard skeptically questioned in response, to which Lync shut up.

"The triumphant hero has triumphantly returned! With triumph!" a familiar voice heralded Lorus and Wesley's return to the camp, the illusionist gleefully clutching a bronze key.

"Congrats," Pierce offered, to which Lorus bowed his head graciously, as the two older men settled in with the teenagers.

"So, either Totomaru or Blanca," Alice thoughtfully observed.

"It's gonna be Totomaru," Lync ascertained.

"Sad as it shall be for the hero to lose his villainous love interest before their story can truly begin, I must agree. Totomaru shall surely be the final victor of this trial," Lorus agreed.

"Yeah. I mean, not only does Totomaru outclass Blanca in pretty much every way, he's got Hare helping him _and_ Fleur. Knowing her, she already knows where the last key is and is waiting in the wings to give it to him at the last minute if he doesn't find it," Boomer nodded.

Further conversation was forestalled as an instantly recognisable voice demanded that they all, "HELP US!"

The ten wizards present turned to see a large car coloured various garish shades of red, blue and yellow bearing down on them from a side street, with Blanca and Eve driving. There were several cracks that had been filled with colourful materials running through the beaten-up plastic car's framework, and as they watched, a green blur smashed into the side, sending another break spiralling through it, which Blanca frantically patched with quick-hardening, molten plastic.

"Is that a giant toy car?" Grace's eyes widened.

"With Hare trying to smash it," Tyria nodded.

"You don't see that every day," Pierce finished.

"Ahem, Wesley coughed," and everyone turned to look at the Ball wizard. "Wesley pointed out, if that is indeed a car made entirely of plastic, how do you think it is going to stop?"

Every wizard present suddenly realised that Blanca's car probably didn't have brakes.

They scattered, Grace vanishing into a rift, Tyria and Lync immediately invoking their respective flight spells, and the rest running to dodge the giant toy bearing down on them.

Hare, for of course it was her that was the green blur attacking Blanca and Eve, suddenly realised that the wheels of the car were the weak point, and, massive frying pan in hand, delivered a smashing blow to one of the car's plastic wheels. Literally. The rear left wheel shattered under the impact, causing the plastic chassis to rock and bounce while still maintaining its momentum. Inside, Eve screamed, and Blanca gritted her teeth. "You're horrible at smashing cars!" she shrieked.

"Smash this!" In a superspeed-assisted motion, as her giant saucepan vanished back into her Requip space, Hare jumped into the air, sailing over the moving vehicle in a perfect backflip, before bringing both feet down on the car's bonnet in a staggering dual kick. The impact, combined with the bouncing, caused the rear of Blanca's car to lift into the air and begin to flip forwards, as though it were playing leapfrog with Hare.

Blanca laughed maniacally as her vehicle was about to pass clear over Hare in another backflip. "Ha! I'm the best at doing backflips! I am!" she shrieked as her car rolled forwards, letting Hare crash into the ground as her car passed over her, before landing on its roof and sliding, that way, the last few feet to come to a rest near the Garuda.

Hare regained her feet, panting, and growling.

"Is it over?" Boomer questioned.

Suddenly, the battered plastic car exploded, scattering pieces of fabricated material everywhere, revealing Eve lying on her chest and heaving gasps of air into her lungs, and Blanca standing upright triumphantly, a key clutched in her hand. "Oh yeah! I'm the best at making dynamic entrances, the best at driving, and, most importantly, the best at finding keys!"

"NOOOOOOO!" Hare shrieked. "Forgive me, Totomaru! I've failed you!"

"Blanca beat Totomaru," Pierce said out loud. The words sounded unfamiliar in his mouth.

"Blanca beat Totomaru with Hare helping him," Tyria nodded, amazed, as she and Lync landed with the others.

"Are we dreaming?" Lync questioned, putting a hand to his mouth and whispering to Tyria.

"No. Obviously we all just jinxed it," Boomer sighed, shaking his head.

"Alright!" the guild master's voice called, and Master Feng stepped out of the Garuda's captain's quarters and onto the deck. "The time limit has elapsed, so let's - what the hell happened here?" she demanded.

"I'm the best at finding keys!" A nodding Blanca repeated, unbothered by the traumatised Celestial wizard lying at her feet, the warped shards of plastic surrounding her, the kimono-clad woman bawling her eyes out a few metres away and the ten shellshocked wizards watching the spectacle.

"I see," Feng nodded. A staircase of fire appeared where she was standing and she strode down the passage created by her magic, letting it disperse behind her. "Very well. Does anyone know where Totomaru and Fleur are?"

"I'm sure they'll be here soon," Sarph nodded, as he and Garrotte landed nearby. "You have some brilliantly dangerous ruins here. I fully approve of your efforts to get this place certified as a protected site," he commented as Artorias emerged from the Garuda, leaving only Sensho and Astro's droid on board, and the three S-Class wizards flanked Master Feng once more.

"Thank you," Feng nodded graciously. "Alright, everyone! I take it you all have your keys?"

Pierce, Tyria, Boomer, Lorus, Alice and Blanca all raised their treasures.

"Good! Now; Astro?"

At the tiller, the robot manning the ship's controls pulled a lever, and the Garuda promptly began to rise into the air, preparing to fly away. As it did, it revealed that there were six doors, each with a keyhole in the centre of them, cut into the ground, no doubt leading to underground challenges. "You see these six doors? Your keys each unlock one of them - though I won't tell you which matches with which. You'll have to figure that one out for yourself," Feng smirked. "Only one team can enter each door, and once the doors are open, you will enter the ancient catacombs beneath Diamauros,"

"C-catacombs?" Eve squeaked.

"Indeed. Down there is a massive maze, abundant with monsters, traps and all manner of other hazards - including your opponents, and the three S-Class wizards who are currently present, who will do everything in their power to hinder you," Master Feng explained. "But there are also four objective rooms hidden throughout the catacombs. And you will need to find one of these rooms and defend it from attackers until the round ends, which it will when there is exactly one team in each of the four goal rooms. When that condition is filled, you will be transported to the location of the final stage of the Trials," she finished.

The twelve participants waited for a moment, but there was no more. "Well? What are you waiting for? Go!" Feng commanded - and suddenly the wizards rushed past her, each brandishing their keys.

Pierce and Grace were there first by way of spatial magic, and Pierce immediately tried his key in the left-most door. "Nope," he shook his head, and Grace opened a rift under their feet that dropped them on top of the second gate, which he also tried. "Still nothing,"

By now, the others had arrived, and Blanca rudely shoved the Tamer out of the way, before trying her own key. "Damnit!" she groaned when the lock wouldn't click. "I'm the best at using keys! So why won't this key use?!"

Pierce and Grace made for the third gate, only to see Boomer and Hare dropping into it. They promptly beelined for the fourth, and tried that one. This time, the lock clicked, and the doors fell away beneath their feet, sending them plunging into the abyss.

Meanwhile, Lorus had successfully opened the far-left door that Pierce had first tried, and he and Wesley floated down on a sledge of crystallised air. In seconds, the sledge had hid the ground, and Lorus pushed off. "Hold on tight," he advised Wesley, who promptly clung to his coat, before the crystal sled sped down the sloped tunnel they found themselves in.

Back on the surface, Tyria and Lync had released the lock on the right-most door and dove into the catacombs. Now that there were only two doors left, Blanca finally found her door, and, dragging Eve by the wrist, pulled her with her into her door, leaving Alice, who had held back from all the chaos, to take her key to the last remaining door and jump in, Hydranoid on her shoulder.

Artorias and Sarph waited near Master Feng. "Mastah? We gonna go in?" Garrotte asked, but she held up a hand. "Wait. Something's coming,"

"What?" Sarph blinked.

"I'm sensing a great source of magic power approaching. I've been detecting it for a couple of hours, and I believe it is hostile," the guild master explained.

"But . . if you're expecting an attack, then why did you just send the others into the catacombs?"

"Because I wanted to ensure that they wouldn't be caught in a crossfire. Besides, if we do get attacked, here of all places, it's going to be my business and mine alone," Feng sighed to herself, her expression loosing its hardness for a moment. "I don't want to drag the youngsters into it,"

"And yet you'll happily drag us into it?" Artorias questioned with a faint note of irritation in his voice. This, everyone present knew, meant he was very frustrated.

"If I'm right, I'm not fool enough to face a threat like this by myself. I love you brats more than life . . but I'm damn well not going to risk that life of mine more than necessary!" the guild master snapped.

"Ahem. You're overthinking this. If Master says she needs our help, so be it," Sarph ascertained, and Garrotte nodded in approval. After a second's consideration, Artorias shrugged.

"Besides. I don't see anything . . perhaps I was wrong?" Feng mused, looking up at the sky.

There was a moment's pause as Phoenix's Eye's four most powerful wizards (sans Faraday) searched the skies for anything out of the ordinary. The Garuda was hovering on the outskirts of town, several kilometres away, so they had a mostly uninterrupted view of the world around the,.

Sarph was the first to see the attack as it approached. "Incoming!" he shouted, spotting a massive object falling towards them from above the clouds.

"Scatter!" Garrotte barked, and the four S-Class wizards leapt in different directions as the huge object continued barreling towards them.

"Wait. Is that . . ." Sarph trailed off as, now that he had a better perspective, he realised what exactly their attacker was.

"A giant human skull," Artorias muttered. Sure enough, the skull was easily the size of a house, and as it impacted with the remains of a flowerbed on the ground, a figure leapt out of it, seconds before it exploded into pieces, scattering dirt, stone and shards of bone everywhere.

The figure landed in front of Artorias, revealing itself to be a girl with unnaturally pale skin, a violet ponytail and dull red eyes, wearing a black chiton and sandals. "So, you lived," Eurydice commented as Artorias tensed for combat. "How disappointing,"

Sarph and Garrotte both saw that their teammate was under attack and was about to move to help him, but they each had their own problems. Aberforth the Assassin had landed in front of Sarph, his full-body white cloak rippling, and drawing his flintlock in preparation for combat. "Blaster wants to blow your heart out. And I'd be a bad Assassin if I didn't oblige him. So sayeth the Assassin," Aberforth cheekily winked. "Also known as Superior Saturday. (Copyright: Garth Nix),"

"Did you just _say_ a bracket?" Sarph blinked.

Meanwhile, Mordonna, with her sky-blue hair and tiger skin leotard, was facing down Garrotte, who had gone into battle form and was gripping his whip. "Aww, who's a good kitty?" she crooned. "Maybe if you play nice, I'll give you a scratch behind the ears,"

"Ah'm gonna give _you_ a scratch," the Exceed growled, brandishing his barbed-wire whip in fury.

Opposite Artorias from the impact site, Feng saw her guildmates under attack. Tendrils of fire flared to life in her hands, and she was about to leap in to aid them, but a dark-clad man landed in front of her from out of nowher, dressed in segmented armour that seemed to be made of obsidian, with red highlights, and had a black hood covering his head, who was carrying a long metal rod that had a clenched fist on the top and a clock-hand-like barb on the bottom, using it as a walking stick. He was accompanied by a wizened man with short, black hair in green leather armour.

She immediately recognised the elder man. "So, it _is_ you,"

"Indeed it is," Eternity, Guild Master of Kairos End, the End of All Days, nodded. "It's been a long time, Feng,"

"Fifty-six years. I was starting to think you were dead," Feng Chriona, Guild Master of Phoenix's Eye, commented.

Eternity raised his eyebrows. "Really?"

"No," Feng shook her head.

"I didn't think so," Eternity admitted, bobbing his head, with its sunken eyes, gaunt lines and black eyeshadow, ever so slightly.

"So, I suppose you want to fight?" the Phoenix suggested.

"Honestly? No," Eternity shook his head. "You know what it is that I want. If you'll give it up to me, then me and mine will leave in peace,"

Feng didn't respond, looking at the three other matchups between her wizards and their opponents, and Eternity's assistant. Her eyes slid over Aberforth and Clockwork, and only lingered briefly on Eurydice, but paused when she saw Mordonna. Her lips parted in a small 'o', and she glared at Eternity with unbridled hatred. "What have you _done_?"

"What you never had the guts to do. All the power at your fingertips and you leave it buried in the dust of these ruins - it makes me sick," Eternity growled. "But, as you can see, I've done my own research. What you were given freely, I've spent decades' blood, sweat and tears to even scratch the surface of. And once I had, I went deeper,"

 _"Lycurgus!"_ The name snapped out from the Guild Master's lips like a gunshot. Eternity, hearing the name, almost recoiled, but caught himself at the last moment. "You, of all people, have no right to know me by that name," he growled.

"Listen to yourself. You're digging into _consecrated ground_ ," Feng lowly growled.

"And you've bought into too many of your family's fears to realise the potential you have," Eternity retorted. "But I've already wasted enough of my life arguing with members of the Chriona family. Are you going to give me what I want, or will me and my Ends of Days have to take it?"

"You've already wrought enough atrocities. I will never enable you to commit more," Feng retorted with a tch. 'The Ends of Days,' she thought. 'Was that seriously the best he could come up with? If he makes a pun about 'putting people in a daze', I'm going to throw up,'

"Very well," Eternity sighed. "Everyone?"

At once, the three wizards confronting Feng's guildmates acted. With a flash of Requip magic, a sniper rifle appeared in Aberforth's hands, aimed directly at Sarph. The Archive wizard almost laughed as he raised Solamion, generating an Archive screen around it. "Bullets? Seriously?"

"Are we gonna take that from him, Piercer?" Aberforth questioned. If the named gun responded, only Aberforth heard it, but it was obviously satisfactory, as he fired.

Sarph's contemptuous smirk froze on his lips, and he collapsed, his sword clattering to the ground as blood began to leak from a wound underneath his perfectly-intact armour. "Piercer's bullets are special. They're only solid to living tissue, meaning they can pass through inanimate objects like swords and armour, but still take a chunk out of you," Aberforth explained with a cold smile.

Artorias and Garrotte turned in shock, but their own attackers took the opportunity their distraction afforded them. Mordonna produced a key made of purple-tinted crystal from a fold in her sleeve and brandished it. "Open, gate of the graveyard! Pluto!" she invoked, and there was the familiar doorbell sound of Celestial Magic activating, though no spirit appeared that anyone could see.

And then a cage of bones erupted from the ground around Garrotte, each glowing with an unearthly purple-black light. With a poof of smoke, the Exceed was shrunk back into his smaller form, and the cage immediately shrunk to fit.

Artorias, having observed this, immediately spun back to his opponent with magic circles spinning in his hands. But he was already too late.

"Cthonic Kaleidoscope," Eurydice declared, with grey seals emitting multicoloured light spinning in her hands, which she brought together with a rainbow flash.

And suddenly Artorias was somewhere else. Strapped to a table, wearing only his underwear, with familiar dark faces cackling over him as they wielded instruments of torture in order to sacrifice his pain to their god . . . All rationality ebbed out of him, and he screamed. The Blood Wizard had never felt more terrified in his life.

"Go on," Eurydice whispered, seemingly mesmerised by the torture Artorias was enduring. "Beg for it. Beg for the sweet embrace of death to relieve you of your pain,"

Feng watched, shocked, as her three strongest wizards were, one by one, incapacitated. Sarph was bleeding out on the floor, Garrotte had been reduced to a pet in a cage, and Artorias seemed in the thrall of a waking nightmare.

Who, or what, were these wizards that Lycurgus had found, that they could so effortlessly wreak havoc on her strongest mages?

"Now then. I suppose it's just you and me," Eternity smiled grimly at her, and an involuntary shiver ran up Feng's spine. "You actually do want to fight me," she surmised.

"Honestly? Not quite. What I want is to _defeat_ you. I want to prove that your uncle made the wrong choice all those years ago. I want to show you, Feng Chriona, that _I_ , and _only I_ , deserve to be the Master of the Phoenix's Eye Guild," the man declared. "Clockwork? Back off," he commanded, and his accomplice nodded, retreating to give the two Guild Masters room to fight.

Feng leapt backwards and shouted, "Wings of Soulfire!" Massive wings of flickering flames emerged from her back and caught her in mid-air, allowing her to hover above Eternity. "Blasts of Soulfire!" she commanded, and more of the enchanted Phoenix flames enveloped her forearms, becoming magical blasters. She promptly launched a pair of fireballs from them, which flew towards Eternity.

In response, Eternity slammed his staff into the ground, and there was the sudden sound of a bell tolling. "February," he commanded, and the invisible bell rang twice, before a blast of glistering white energy shot from his staff and met the fireballs. Both attacks dissipated in an orange/white explosion.

Feng gritted her teeth and dodged sideways, before launching another blast of flame at Eternity. The man simply dodged with surprising agility, before launching another blast of his February attack.

Feng darted to the left in mid-air again to dodge the shockwave, but it had been a feint, as, right after firing, Eternity leapt impossibly high into the air, before coming down on her from above with the sharp, clock-hand-like butt of his iron staff pointed towards her head. "May!" he barked, and a lance of golden energy erupted from the staff. By the time the Phoenix had realised what he was doing, it was too late to dodge, and the blast threw her downwards where she smashed into a ruined wall that had once been part of a building, demolishing it.

Eternity landed with a grimace. "It doesn't have to be this way, Feng,"

"No, it doesn't," Feng shook her head, standing up. "But I know you won't back down, and that there's nothing I can say to dissuade you from these actions,"

"Very well. June!" Eternity declared, and lasers of heated orange energy shot from the outstretched fingers of his staff's hand. Feng ducked and weaved, but one of them caught her arm, piercing her red martial arts gi and soaking into her skin.

Suddenly, all the moisture in her mouth dried up, her body sagged, and she collapsed to the ground, feeling almost completely drained of liquids.

The End of All Days smirked, advancing. "I think it's clear which of us is the better wizard," he smirked.

"Did . . . did you . . ." Feng wheezed through parched lips.

Eternity raised his eyebrows and smiled. She was about to admit his superiority, he could feel it.

". . . seriously name all of your attacks after the months of the year?" the Phoenix questioned with an amused smile, in spite of her condition.

The Kairos gritted his teeth. "After all this time . . all the things I have done, all the lengths I have gone to . . . you still don't take me _seriously_!" he raged, raising his staff. "October!" A black nebula of darkness built at the head of his staff, and he slammed it into the ground, sending the dark magic flying towards Master Feng. It immediately enveloped her, exploding outwards and covering her body, immediately swallowing her up, and in her parched state, Feng could offer no resistance.

Soon, her entire body from the neck down had been overtaken by the black, cloud-like substance. Raising his arm, the Phoenix was lifted to her feet and dragged forwards, until she was only a couple of feet from Eternity.

"But that doesn't matter. I've outgrown you, Feng Chriona," the Kairos End guild master told her with a scowl. "I no longer care for the name of Phoenix's Eye; all I want is the power behind it. So, tell me. Where is that power?" he questioned, yellow eyes staring into hers.

For a brief moment, Feng thought that she could see the man Lycurgus had once been, but then realised she was deluding herself. Lycurgus was gone, and this whole situation made that clear.

In her reflections, she almost missed the next thing that Eternity said - but as soon as he spoke, she was immediately snapped out of her reverie.

Staring into her soul, Eternity demanded _, "Where is the Sempiternal Phoenix?"_

A/N

 **A/N**

 **Big chapter here. Hugely important to the plot. I hope you all liked it. ^^**

 **Also, sorry to the fans of the S-Class wizards, but they will not be playing major roles in this arc. Instead, I'm giving time to the likes of Fleur and Blanca and Totomaru and Alice. So hopefully that'll make up for it.**

 **Now. So much happening this chapter! Insight into the nature of the villain, opening up so many questions! This is so much fun! {cackles} Peace!**


	60. A Ghost Of The Past

Chapter 60: A Ghost of the Past

 ** _Previously, on The Guild Next Door . . ._**

 _"Regykraeon, an air demon. He'd been trapped in the book for hundreds of years, so he was grateful to me for releasing him. So grateful that he decided to kill everyone in the town in my honour," Boomer gulped, standing in the ghost town of Ghoulia._

 _~P's E~_

 _"I no longer care for the name of Phoenix's Eye; all I want is the power behind it. So, tell me. Where is that power?" Eternity, Guild Master of Kairos End, who Master Feng Chriona knows by the name of Lycurgus, questioned, yellow eyes staring her soul. He demanded, "Where is the Sempiternal Phoenix?"_

 _~P's E~_

"The . . Sempiternal . . ." Feng blinked, shocked. "How the _hell_ do _you_ know about _that_?"

"Surprised?" Eternity chuckled. "I know all about the Chriona family's little secret. After all, I was your uncle's protégé,"

"But he didn't tell you about it. I'm certain of that," Feng frowned.

The Kairos End Master shook his head. "No. But there were whispers. Rumours. Stories. And after a little while, it all started to add up," he explained. "So I started digging. Searching. Knowing that, eventually, I would find something. And I did," he smirked. "You can imagine my surprise when my findings led me straight back to the place that I had left in their pursuit,"

"Yes, I can," Feng rolled her eyes.

"But I suppose it was inevitable. Because, after all, you and yours never would have told me, would you? Just like you haven't told your protégés either," Eternity mused. "Take that Artorias boy, for example. He reminds me so much of myself at a younger age. I wonder if you intend to do with him the same that your father did to me?" he questioned, a dark note in his voice.

"Your fate was your own fault. And I have taken every precaution to keep Artorias away from it," Feng hissed in response.

Eternity simply chuckled. "And then there's that Faraday woman. Such a _pity_ she couldn't be here. Now, I wonder why that was?"

The Guild Master of Phoenix's Eye's eyes widened. "No. No, she wouldn't. She, of all people, would never betray us,"

"Believe what you will," Eternity shrugged. "But regardless," He cast a glance at the six doors leading into the catacombs, where he knew that the rest of the Phoenix's Eye wizards were still in the middle of their games. "Eurydice. Mordonna. Aberforth. One of my Ends of Days is already down in the catacombs with the Phoenixes. Go and aid him," he commanded.

The three nodded, and leapt towards the six doors, fully intending to break them down if necessary. Which it would be, and it would take them a little while, but they would manage it eventually.

"Clockwork. Watch her," he commanded the remaining man, who nodded. "I will search for the Sempiternal Phoenix,"

~P's E~

Behind a wall, Totomaru and Fleur crouched. They had been on their way back, knowing that they had failed the Trial, but noticed that their senior members were under attack. Both had been ready to jump in if necessary, but after seeing how easily the S-Class wizards were dispatched, the Phoenixes had decided it would be safer for them if they remained hidden. As a result, they had seen - and heard - everything.

Totomaru poked Fleur to get her attention, and the silver-haired Petal Wizard raised an eyebrow at him.

With a series of rapid motions with his hands, the fire wizard spoke, in sign language, _'What should we do?'_

 _'We can't fight. They'd kill us,'_ his partner signed back.

Totomaru rolled his eyes and gritted his teeth. _'Well, we have to do something. Those Days people are hunting down our friends!'_

 _'They need to be warned,'_ Fleur agreed. _'And we need help, too. If we can get word back to the guild, they might be able to get a message to Faraday. Or maybe Fairy Tail, or the Magic Council,'_

 _'That's assuming that this Lycurgus man is lying and Faraday isn't actually working with them,'_ the fohawked man shook his head. _'But calling Fairy Tail or the Council's a good idea. I'm sure Astro would have a way to do it,'_

 _'But we also need to get into the catacombs and warn the others,'_ Fleur pointed out.

 _'You can do that. Your Petal magic will work better in the confined quarters. I'll go to the Garuda and get Astro to call for help,'_ the fire wizard suggested, and Fleur nodded, accepting this - as much as she wanted to protest being given the difficult job. Without further comment, she checked to make sure that the coast was clear, before dashing to a nearby section of cover to make her way to the still-open doors that the three Days had failed to close after breaking into.

Totomaru turned and eyed the Garuda, on the edge of town. "Oh, for teleportation magic," he muttered, starting his own journey.

~P's E~

The twelve Phoenixes in the catacombs, of course, didn't know what had happened above ground. Indeed, they were all busy with the trial.

Hare was still fuming about how she'd failed Totomaru. "He'll never love me now!" she spontaneously moped.

"Can you focus? We have a trial to win!" Boomer pointed out.

"Forget the stupid trial! Totomaru's love for me is in jeopardy!" Hare sobbed.

Boomer sighed. He had really hoped he wouldn't have to do this . . but sometimes you had to play though the bad tracks on an album to get to the good stuff. "Well, think about it this way. How impressed do you think he'll be if he sees you help me win the Trials?" he questioned.

Hare suddenly brightened, her eyes widening in realisation. "Hey . . . yes! You're right!" she suddenly beamed. "We're going to win these Trials! For Totomaru!" the green wizard declared, grabbing Boomer's arm and launching herself down the tunnel, dragging her unfortunate partner with her.

Soon, the two Phoenixes emerged into a large chasm hewn from rock, with glowing crystals at the top providing illumination. Hare immediately skidded to a halt. "This place reeks of trap," she pointed out.

"No kidding," Boomer agreed. There was only one other exit to the cave, and it was at the far end. They just had to cross a large, open space to get to it. "A hundred jewels says, as soon as we reach the centre of the cavern, monsters will appear all around us,"

"Tch. Two hundred jewels says they'll wait until we reach the other exit, and then it'll seal up and we'll get attacked from behind," Hare retorted with a contemptuous smirk.

"Three hundred jewels says you'll be attacked _right now_!" a voice came from behind them. Boomer and Hare span to see who was speaking, but there was no one in the cave behind them - until a solid wall of bone blocked the exit.

They waited for a moment, but no attack was forthcoming.

"Once upon a time, there was a little town in the hills," A sing-song voice came from their left, and, goosebumps racing up Boomer's arms, they span, but there was nothing there.

Suddenly, the cavern was plunged into darkness, the cluster of glowing crystals suddenly no longer giving off light.

"It was a happy little place, full of lovely people . . . until one day, they all vanished," The voice came from all around them, and Hare rapidly reached for Boomer's arm. Luckily, she found it, and griped it tight, feeling her heart beating or of her chest.

"No one ever found out what happened, because the only person who could have told them never had the _guts_ to own up to what he had done," The high-pitched, lyrical voice was taking on a darker tone by now, and Boomer paused, blood draining from his face. This story . . it sounded like the speaker was talking about . . .

"And so it was that no one who had been in that town on that unfortunate day was. _Ever_. **_Seen_**. **_AGAIN_** ," At this point, the voice, which has slowly grown deeper and throatier with each word, sounded positively unhinged, and something very unusual was happening to Hare . . . she was feeling truly afraid.

The light started to flicker in front of them, a pale woman with blood-red eyes that, despite the absence of illumination, glittered, slowly emerging from the gloom. A deranged grin was plastered across her face, reeking of pure, unadulterated bloodlust.

" ** _Do you see me NOW?!_** " Eurydice gleefully demanded in a deep voice sharply at odds with how she had been talking before.

The Phoenixes whimpered.

And then she was gone. The lights returned, and the two were alone in the chamber.

"You saw that too, right?" Boomer wheezed.

"Y-yeah," Hare shivered. "Was that part of the trial?"

"I sure hope so," the Sound wizard nodded. He paused, lifting his boombox and tinkering with the settings. "Okay," he nodded to himself, trying to keep his cool, and activated it, sending a pulse of sound throughout the cave, like sonar.

In seconds, he had his answers. "That trap we expected? The trigger point's in the middle of the cave. There's nothing else here," Boomer stated. "We'll be fine as long as we keep to the edges of the cave. Also, I win the bet,"

"Forget the bet! If we haven't triggered the cave's trap yet, then what the hell did we just see?" Hare demanded.

"I don't know . . but I think something might have gone wrong with the trial," her partner gulped.

"We'll just have to be on our guard, then," Hare resolved, grabbing Boomer's arm again and blurring along the right side of the rotund cave.

It worked, and they reached the midway point of the journey - and then something protruded from the wall of the cave, interrupting Hare's momentum.

It was a bony arm, which had spontaneously erupted from the wall of the cave, and cut them off. And then the skeleton arm flexed and wrapped around Hare's waist, pinning her in place.

Boomer jerked away, and Hare spasmed, trying to break the bone's hold, but it was determined. And it had friends. Skeletal hands emerged and wrapped around first her ankles, then her wrists, as an emancipated ribcage wrapped around her waist. The Speed wizard's motions grew more and more panicked as her motion was cut off, and she glared at Boomer. "You idiot! You said the trap was in the centre of the room!"

"It was! I'm sure!" Boomer panicked.

"Ugh. Hang on, I'm going to try something," Hare decided, raising her arm as much as she could, before splaying her fingers in a similar manner as Grace did. "Can't believe I'm doing this," she muttered as a sphere of white light appeared around her, overlapping with the walls and floor around her.

And then she spoke a series of words that didn't sound like any language Boomer recognised, a combination of noises that sounded like they should never be put together. _"Futto zabukke yavaz yasun!_ " Every word caused a white flash and a word in a language Boomer couldn't read to appear in front of her, and, at the last, she twisted her hand and pressed it to the bones around her arm. There was a white flash.

When Boomer looked back, nothing had changed, except the expression on Hare's face. "Stupid - bloody - unpronounceable - nonsense!" she cursed.

A deep, morbid chuckle interrupted them before Booker could ask what had just happened. "I **_see_** that you're having some problems. Personally, **_I_** thought that was pathetic," It was the same sourceless voice as before, which seemed to have gotten over its anger. "I wonder if you'll **_survive_** my designs?" It was taking on an unearthly tone now, like something out of a horror movie. For one word in each sentence, the lilting voice was replaced with a dark, sadistic one that sent shivers up their spine.

"W-who are you?" Boomer demanded, looking around.

The chuckling turned derisive. "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised **_you_** don't know," the voice sounded disappointed. "But this is good, I can **_certainly_** have some fun with this. How long **_will_** it take you to figure it out? And will you manage it before you **_die_**?"

"Why are you doing this?" Boomer tried again, keeping a few steps away from both the walls and the centre of the room.

"I already said that you should **_know_** ," the voice continued. "But if you must have a hint, **_I_** will provide you with one," And suddenly the roof and walls of the cave were gone, and Boomer and Hare, who was still restrained, were standing on a plateau at the top of a mountain. Rain poured down around them, with pearls of thunder echoing through the air and flashes of lightning singing their retinas. "Are you ready to **_take_** a guess yet?" the voice asked. "Have you figured out why I want **_revenge_**?!"

Before Boomer could speak, a bolt of blue lightning struck the ground directly in front of him, searing a jagged image into his eyes. He closed his eyes and rubbed them, trying to dispel the after-image . . and suddenly he worked it out. Storms. Lightning. Regykraeon. _Ghoulia_.

"You're from Ghoulia, aren't you?" he asked.

Suddenly, the storm vanished and they were back in the cave. Though Boomer doubted they had ever really left it.

There was a ripple of shadows opposite him, and the woman he had seen before reappeared, her eyebrows raised in cruel amusement. "So, you do remember," Eurydice commented, her macabre, gothic tones no longer straying into high-pitched squeals or throaty growls.

"Of course," Despite the situation, Boomer smiled. He hadn't been the only survivor or Regykraeon's twisted tribute! This was great! "I can't believe it. I thought I was the only one to survive!"

"And this makes you _happy_?" Eurydice growled.

"Well . . yes?" Seeing the thunderous expression on the woman's face, Boomer's smile started to fade.

Eurydice's blood-red eyes glittered menacingly. "Emanuel 'Boomer' Arestrad. My name is Eurydice Soter, and seven years ago, I was a normal girl living in the town of Ghoulia. And I have you to blame for that changing,"

Boomer gulped.

"My family, my home, my friends. Everything I ever knew was torn to shreds. Because of _you_ ," Eurydice growled. Her foot shone with unearthly light, and she stamped it into the ground, commanding, "Rise, souls of the damned!" The ground shook, and half a dozen skeletons emerged, clawing their way out of the rock, which sealed itself beneath them. Each was wearing tatters of clothing, and drunkenly clutching a sword made of stone, and they slowly began to shamble across the cave towards Boomer.

"How dare you?" Eurydice demanded. "How dare you leave it behind and pretend it never happened, leaving all the corpses in your wake to rot? How dare you try to claim happiness for yourself after snatching it away from so many others?"

At this accusation, Boomer sunk to his knees, looking down at the ground. "I . . you're . . you're right," he nodded, shaking his head. "I . . I don't deserve to be happy. Not after what I've done,"

Eurydice smirked, revelling in the emotional pain Boomer was engulfed in. Any minute now, and he'd be begging for death . . and she'd gladly oblige.

"Are you _shitting_ me?" Both looked up in surprise, realising that Hare had spoken up. "Are you actually taking this bitch seriously?!" she shouted, incensed, at Boomer.

"Of course I am! Because she's right!" Boomer replied, moisture glistening in his eyes.

"So what?" the restrained Speed wizard demanded.

This question stunned both former Ghoulians, and Eurydice's undead minions, into silence.

"What do you _mean_ , 'so what'?" Eurydice scathingly questioned with a furiously cocked purple eyebrow.

"Quit living in the fricking past, both of you!" Hare commanded. "Boomer, you little brat, quit moping and _think_! Who gives a crap what happened years ago? Right here, right now, this fricking _necrophile_ is attacking our guild! If you roll over and let her kill you, do you think she's just gonna walk away? Or is she gonna start hunting down the rest of our friends? Are you a little boy, or are you a Phoenix's Eye wizard? Get your shit together!" she ranted, still struggling against her bony bonds.

"Do you really think it's that simple?" Eurydice mockingly questioned. "Do you **_really_** think that you can just wipe your sins under the mat?" she growled at Boomer, who was still staring into his lap.

With a shaking hand, he made a fist, and raised it. "Four," the Sound wizard spoke through gritted teeth, raising his fingers.

"What?" the necromancer blinked, but Hare grinned. Even she knew where this was going.

"There are four rules to being a Phoenix's Eye wizard," Boomer declared. "Rule #1; never let anyone forget your name,"

"Oh? Well, isn't that ironic, since -" Eurydice was in the process of tching, but Boomer interrupted her. "Rule #2, go above and beyond in everything you do,"

Hare grinned. He was back.

"Rule #3, never let anyone get away with doing something bad," Boomer continued, pushing himself to his feet. A sudden, inexplicable wind caused his black jacket to rustle behind him. "Rule #4, stick to your principles above all else!"

After all, you knew something was wrong when _Hare_ , of all people, needed to give you a pep talk.

He raised his boombox, planting it squarely on the ground at his feet. "I've done bad stuff in the past, I'll admit that. But I'll never let it define me. Because I am a Phoenix's Eye wizard above all else, and I'll never let anything make me think otherwise!"

Eurydice frowned. "Is that so?" Her lips split in a savage smile. "Very well. If you won't beg for a merciful death," More and more shambling skeletons emerged from the ground, a full army to complement the six she had already summoned. "I'll give you the most torturous one you can imagine!"

Boomer looked at the mob of sword-wielding skeletons amassed on the other side of the semispherical cave and raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure you want to do that?"

"Yes! Attack!" Eurydice, her red eyes ablaze with anger, commanded, and her zombies rushed forwards.

And as soon as one of them set foot in the centre of the room, the ground shook and began to split, a massive crack running diagonally across the chamber. Several of the skeletons fell in, and only a handful were left on Boomer's side.

The Sound wizard grinned. Eurydice had forgotten about the _original_ trap that Astro had set as part of the Trials. With a few blasts of Sound magic, he knocked the few skeletons encroaching on him and Hare into the chasm, as a deep roar echoed from it.

The sorceress blinked, looking at the mouth ravine that separated her from Boomer, and shoving her skeletons aside to peer into it. "What _is_ that?"

"Come on, Astro. Don't let me down," Boomer begged, crossing his fingers.

And then a massive metal head erupted from the chasm, followed by arms like tree trunks and a chunky body, supported by equally vast legs and a lashing tail with a spiked orb on the end of it. The twenty-foot-tall robot resembled a mixture of a wingless, humanoid dragon and an all-star line-up of construction magic-mobiles, with grinding shredders on its arms, serrated claws on hands and feet, a chunky yet skeletal build that was bristling with lasers and miniature spotlight arrays mounted over its glowing red eyes. "Hello, unfortunate trial-goers! I hope you like my Ast-robot Constructosaur-X! Because if you aren't careful, it'll be -" The recording paused and the machine's head swivelled to face Eurydice and her undead army as the ground resealed itself beneath it. "Unknown party detected. Awaiting confirmation of threat status. Will any present Phoenix's Eye wizards please confirm?" it asked in a different, more mechanical voice.

"She is most definitely a threat, mecha man!" Boomer shouted.

"Threat confirmed. Emergency override activated. User recognised: 'Boomer'. Activating guild defence mode. Transmitting command to all Ast-robots: activate guild defence mode. Engaging in combat," With that, its jaws opened and it discharged a laser directly at the necromancer, who frantically dodged. Even so, the attack obliterated several of her undead minions.

As the Constructosaur-X engaged the enemy, Boomer rushed back to Hare and began yanking at the bony restraints that held her against the wall. The arm around her waist snapped, but the hands clutching her limbs tightened and Hare gritted her teeth. "Stop it! The more you pull away, the tighter the rest become," She cast a nervous glance at the rib cage wrapped around her chest. "And I don't feel like being crushed to death!" she bitingly added.

Boomer reluctantly let go, and Hare rolled her eyes. "Come on, you know the drill. Beat the bitch up and this should go away. As much as I hate sending a kid to do a woman's job, I don't think I have much choice," she groaned.

"I'm almost sixteen," Boomer sulked, but decided not to quibble and turned back to the fight. Though, at this stage, calling it that might be generous.

The Constructosaur-X had demolished Eurydice's armies, and her spells didn't seem to be very effective against it. The bones she summoned barely dented the metal plating, and her other spells seemed, from Boomer's observations, to be primarily designed to fight other living beings, not robots.

"Life Leech!" Eurydice cast, and the air between her and the Ast-robot rippled, but nothing seemed to happen. She dodged a swipe from the machine's claws and, while in mid-air, launched a multicoloured flare of light, declaring, "Cthonic Kaleidoscope!" But as soon as the magic blast made contact with the machine, it immediately dissipated and it was unaffected.

Eurydice crashed to the ground and saw a wrecking ball tail coming towards her. "Bone Shield!" she immediately shouted in panic, and a wall of bones erupted in front of her, taking the blow for her. They shattered, but the dinosaur was impeded, and that bought her the time she needed.

The necromancer snatched a bone from one of her skeletons out of the air and grasped it as though it were a sword, before beating it against the ground. Once . . . Twice . . . Thrice. "Come to me!" she shrieked, her red eyes alight with fury. "Cadaver Golem!"

The ground cracked open, and a massive, human-like abomination emerged, made of rotting, sewn-together flesh, oozing pus and blood everywhere. Eurydice leapt onto her monster's shoulder as it rocketed up to the ceiling, standing on equal ground with the Constructosaur-X.

Boomer felt like puking as soon as he saw it. "That is the most disgusting thing I've ever seen!" he exclaimed. "And I've seen Hare's bed-hair!"

"Yeah, it - hey!" Hare growled, glaring daggers at him.

"Reassessing threat," the Ast-robot droned, before swinging a mighty punch at the golem's chest. The mechanical limb caught in the soft, pus-drenched flesh, and seemed to sink into it.

"Uh oh," Boomer gulped, as, like a massive blob, the Cadaver raised its arms and wrapped them around the machine's waist. "There's no way I can fight that thing," he shivered.

"No. My Cadaver Golem will absorb anything and convert it into mass and strength. It is **_unbeatable_** ," Eurydice gloated from its shoulder.

The Sound wizard frowned. There had to be some way to destroy this thing! Come on, think!

And suddenly it hit him. The Constructosaur-X! Astro wouldn't have made it easy to defeat, he would have installed some kind of failsafe. A way to make sure that it would be trouble no matter who defeated it. Like a self-destruct.

"Constructosaur-X! Self-destruct!" Boomer shouted in panic.

"Negative. Please log in to access executive functions," the robot replied, even as it was being consumed.

"Um . . username: Boomer! Password: Sonic Boom!" Boomer tried, hoping that the robot would accept the credentials. Hopefully Astro had programmed them in.

"Denied," the robot replied.

The boy gulped. "Uh . . username: Boomer Arestrad! Password: Sonic Boom!"

"Denied," the Constructosaur-X repeated.

By now, the machine had been half swallowed up by Eurydice's massive blob.

"Forget remote control! Do it manually!" Hare shouted, and Boomer nodded. "Right!" Shouldering his boombox, he dashed for the machine's spiked tail, hoisting himself on top of it, before running up the arced back of the machine.

Eurydice frowned, and kicked at her monster. "Faster!" she commanded, and the Cadaver Golem gurgled in response and jerked, lifting the machine it was eating upwards and making the incline Boomer was running up steeper.

Eventually it got too high, and the Phoenix hastily caught a spike with his hand before he lost his grip, and resting his feet on a lower spike. At this point, he started looking around for an access panel that he could use to get inside.

"Just smash it!" Hare shouted at him.

"Quit backseat-fighting!" Boomer hollered back, but took her advice, and, hefting his boombox, smashed it like a club at a join between panels. It ruptured, opening a hole the side of Boomer's fist - and that was all he needed, transferring his boombox to his other hand, before reaching inside and opening his hand. "Sonic Shock!" the boy shouted, launching an attack of disrupting sound into the machine's internal workings.

A noise like churning mud got his attention, and he spotted a wall of oozing, pus-coated flesh advancing on him. Hastily, Boomer let go, and rode down the smooth back of the machine like a slide, eventually ending up where he had started. "Any minute now," he nodded, crossing his fingers.

There was a hiss of steam as the entire upper body of the machine was engulfed, and the monster began to advance towards him and Hare. "Any moment now," Boomer nodded, trying to convince himself.

"Are you sure you did it right?" Hare huffed.

"Yes!" Boomer snapped.

"Because it isn't exploding," the Speed witch pointed out with an irritatedly arched eyebrow.

As if to spite her, just then the built-up pressure within the robot's hydraulics reached critical mass, causing its capacitators to blow out with a series of firework-like detonations. Seconds later, the pent-up pressure in the energy core, now that it no longer had capacitators to keep it under control, went critical.

The Cadaver Golem paused, seeming to shrink in on itself as it inspected the contents of its stomach.

And then it exploded, scraps of metal and flesh going in every direction. Boomer invoked, "Sonic Shield!" and a wall of Sound shielded him and Hare from the shrapnel.

When the smoke cleared, both robot and monster were reduced to scraps of metal and flesh. Boomer dropped his shield, just as he made out Eurydice's prone form, lying on her back, across the cave. He frowned and advanced on her, emotions in turmoil within him. On the one hand, she'd just tried to kill him. On the other . . . she might be the only person left in the world who he could relate to about his past.

She wasn't moving, and for a moment Boomer thought Eurydice was dead. He crouched, looking at her head, concerned.

Suddenly, in sheer defiance of the laws of physics, Eurydice's body levitated into the air and righted itself, standing perfectly upright. Boomer grabbed his boombox, ready to attack again if necessary, but paused as the girl's red eyes slid open.

"I hate you, you know that?" the necromancer murmured.

"I'm sorry . . . but I hope you can forgive me for the things I did," Boomer shook his head.

"It won't matter either way. My time is almost up," There was a faint tinge of disappointment to her tone.

"What are you talking about? You're hurt, but it's nothing that won't heal," Boomer frowned, checking her again. No mortal injuries. Unless there was a massive piece of shrapnel in her back that he couldn't see, she should be fine.

"No, you don't get it," Eurydice shook her head. "You were right the first time. You were indeed the only survivor of the Ghoulia disaster,"

Boomer blinked. "What?"

Her body suddenly began to ripple, and - to Boomer's horror - fade, her hands and feet dissipating into nothingness. "I was just a ghost of the past you've moved on from," Eurydice explained as her lower body ceased to exist. "But that's alright. Just tell me, can you follow your own creed? Will you make sure that my name, and that of our home, is never forgotten?"

"I will," Boomer nodded, and a small, but genuine smile appeared on Eurydice's face. "Good," And with that, she ceased to exist, borne back into the grave she never should have left.

The remnants of Eurydice's summons collapsed into dust, and Hare pulled herself free of her disintegrating bonds. "Well, that happened," she groaned.

"Yeah," Boomer thoughtfully nodded, pursing his lips. "Eurydice Soter . . I won't forget you,"

A/N

 **A/N (Important information, please read to the end of the A/N!)**

 **Whoooooooo. Ghooooooost nooooooooiseeeeeeeesss.**

 **In all seriousness, though, I think that went well. And don't worry, the exact nature of Eurydice's being will be expanded on in a later chapter. Though I'm starting to feel like I'm beating a dead donkey with the Ghoulia thing. Thoughts, anyone?**

 **Also, kinda disappointed in myself that I had to keep Hare out of this one. Is she even a major character anymore?**

 **. . Yes, she is, because the entire Princess of Lies story arc is devoted to her - wait, is that the first time I've name-dropped Hare's character arc? {checks} Yes. It is. Well, cat's out of the bag now.**

 **Also, speaking of the Princess of Lies arc, I've made a choice I want to announce; after careful consideration, I've decided that I am going to switch the positions of the Key of the Starry Heavens and Princess of Lies arcs, so, after the S-Class Trials, it'll be Princess of Lies, then Key of the Starry Heavens, then Grand Magic Games. I feel that the story will flow a lot better if I do it that way.**

 **Now, the fun part. I have posted on my profile a poll containing a complete list of every OC that has been introduced in this story, whether they are made up by myself or submitted by someone else. (At least, I think it's complete. I might have missed a couple.) So here's the idea; it's a popularity contest! I want everyone to vote for your five favourite Phoenix's Eye OCs, and we'll see which characters prove to be the most popular! The results will be tallied at Chapter 69, the end of the S-Class Trials arc. So remember to vote! Peace!**


	61. Anima

Chapter 61: Anima

Alarms sounded throughout the whole cave system, and Grace jumped. "What's all that?" she asked Pierce, who shrugged. "I don't know, but it can't be good,"

There was a drone of metal, and a robotic hound that looked vaguely familiar to Pierce came bounding out of the tunnel ahead of them. "Unknown party detected. Guild defence mode activated. S-Class Trials suspended," it explained in a synthetic voice.

"We're being attacked?" Pierce blinked in surprise. "That can't be good,"

"What?" Grace gasped. She gulped. "Uh oh,"

"Um," Pierce thought for a second, before addressing the robot. "Is there an emergency rendezvous point we should go towards?"

"Providing map of cave system," the machine declared, projecting a hologram of the catacombs underneath Diamauros into the air. A blue dot marked their current position, and there were four green crosses deeper into the caves. Pierce studied it, and nodded. "And what are the green crosses?"

"The goal points of the Trial. In an emergency situation, they are repurposed as emergency exits," the mech hound explained.

"Alright. Let's go," Pierce nodded.

~P's E~

Mordonna smirked to herself as she wandered through the caves. "This is going to be a piece of cake," she grinned, licking her lips appreciatively.

Just then, the ground rumbled, and suddenly several small metal creatures burst out of the ground and started swarming her. The Celestial witch shrieked, and frantically started to ineffectively repel them. "What the hell?"

~P's E~

In another part of the cave, Aberforth was having a similar problem. "What's going on, Slasher?" he asked his sword, even as he used it to disembowel the leader of a squadron of mechanical pirates. "We're being overrun! These robots are everywhere! Forget about me, Slasher, save yourself!" he sobbed, before pausing. "Wait, that doesn't work. You don't have legs," he mused, before blinking. "You _do_ don't have legs, right Slasher? I hope you aren't keeping secrets from me,"

The Assassin suddenly looked up. "Oh, right, army of pirates. Help! I'm totally being overrun here! I'm definitely not destroying all these robots with ease or anything!"

Eventually the last pirate-bot was down, and Aberforth sighed. "Well, that didn't work . . and as fun as that was, if we keep getting attacked by robots, it'll slow us down and then we might not be able to kill all the Phoenixes. And that would be bad, wouldn't it Slasher?" he frowned, eyeing his apparently conversational scimitar.

"Hey, yeah, that's a good idea!" Aberforth suddenly remarked, pulling a crystal out of his pocket. "Calling Mister Monday! Do you read me, Mister Monday?"

"Yes, I hear you," a voice came from the other end. "And stop calling me that!"

"You have no respect for The Keys To The Kingdom!" the Assassin snapped. "(Copyright: Garth Nix),"

"Quit doing that weird 'saying brackets' thing," Monday snapped. "Why are you calling, anyway? You know Master wants me kept in reserve,"

"We're being overrun up here with hundreds of robots, and we've already lost contact with Grim Tuesday," Aberforth explained. "Isn't there something you can do about that?"

"Well, of course. But Master wanted me to save it for later," the other man mused. "But if we've already lost Eurydice . . . fine. I'll fire the EMMP and get the robots off your backs. But if Master calls us out about this later, I'm blaming you,"

"Thank you," Aberforth grinned, before looking at his sword. "Well, Slasher? Don't be rude. Thank Mister Monday,"

Predictably, the sword stayed silent, and Monday sighed. "Whatever," and cut the connection.

He pulled a small device from his pocket and lifted it into the air, pressing a button on the side. "Electromagnetic magic pulse. Go,"

~P's E~

Lorus and Wesley, who had been following another robot, drew up short as it suddenly sparked and died. "What just happened, he asked in confusion?"

~P's E~

Blanca and Eve were having a similar problem. "Oi!" Blanca shrieked, irritably kicking the smoking, deactivated serpent machine that had, until a moment ago, been leading them to the exit. "I don't know who did that, but stop doing it! Only I get to break robots, because I'm the best at it!"

~P's E~

Tyria and Lync were now, with a map to guide them, making for the closest emergency exit.

But, at that moment, something happened. The robot guiding them fizzled and died, and the most curious sensation overcame Tyria; it was as though all feeling in her body was slowly being numbed, starting with her feet and sliding upwards to her head. It happened so quickly, though, that she only had time to squeak before her numbed body collapsed, sending her face-planting onto the floor.

A thud nearby told her Lync had suffered the same fate.

~P's E~

From above, Monday sensed a disturbance in the local magic energies. "Oh?" He cast a glance to the used EMMP, and suddenly recalled that one of the Phoenixes was known to use a form of magic based on technology. Which raised a question he, in retrospect, should have considered before; how would an electromagnetic magic pulse affect such a wizard?

He smiled, baring his teeth, and traced the disruption, before teleporting away in a flash of light.

~P's E~

Tyria heard a small scuffle from behind her. She tried to speak, but her deadened lips wouldn't respond, and all that came out was an unintelligible murmur.

"My, what have we here? Two little Phoenixes, all alone and vulnerable," she heard someone who sounded somewhat familiar mutter.

"I'm not due to do my bit for a while yet, and I know that Master will only thank me for ridding the world of a couple more of you lot," the voice, which she could almost place but not quite, mused, and Tyria sensed that it was smiling.

Her fingers suddenly twitched, and, carefully, Tyria tested them. Feeling had returned to her right hand, which had sprawled in front of her. Good. And she had an idea for what to do to speed up her recovery process. All she had to do was get close enough to the Ast-robot that had collapsed two feet in front of her.

"But I have some time," the unknown attacker considered. "So how about I take the two of you to my little playground and have some fun with you both?" His words were accompanied by a noticeable shift in the magic energy that surrounded them, and a shiver ran down the Electrian's spine. There was something . . . _wrong_ about the power she was now sensing. It seemed almost . . . alien, in a manner of speaking.

Her twitching fingers caught the rim of the robot, and Tyria allowed herself a small smile. She just had to get it to her mouth and take a bite.

"Any complaints?" Knowing it was a bad idea to break her cover in the face of whatever this mystery assailant was plotting, Tyria kept quiet. She heard a moan, however, that could only belong to Lync, followed by a sudden thud. Then silence.

"Well, you know what they say, silence gives consent. So let's go! Anima; open!"

~P's E~

Above Diamauros, the brewing storm suddenly flashed with lighting and began to spin, a vortex of clouds erupting directly over Monday, Tyria and Lync's position underground.

In the ruins, Eternity paused. "I suppose Monday wants to have some fun," he mused. "Well, who am I to begrudge him his playtime?"

The forming vortices in the clouds crackled with lightning, and a funnel-like tornado manifested, connecting the earth and the sky like a vertical tunnel. The wind shredded apart the earth, penetrating to the large magic circle that Monday had cast across the ceiling, and linking with it, creating a gateway directly above them to worlds untold.

Tyria felt someone grab at the lining of her combat pants, and her fingers clenched against the broken machine, refusing to let go of it. And then there was a sudden sensation of weightlessness, as whatever was holding her pulled her upwards, towards the ceiling. In the corner of her vision, she spotted Lync being pulled by the hem of his cloak in a similar manner.

In this manner, Monday, Tyria, Lync and the broken robot all vanished into the Anima portal.

~P's E~

The tech wizard thought later that she must have temporarily blacked out, because the next thing she knew, she had awoken and was lying in sand. And something felt incredibly . . . wrong with her surroundings, and with her body. It took her a good few moments to place it, but eventually, she realised what the problem was.

There was no magic.

None. Every drop of ethernano had been leeched out of her body, and her senses couldn't detect any at all in her surroundings. All of the processes of the technology in her body had been shut down, and trying to access it yielded no results. Even the HUD that her magic normally projected onto her vision was gone. She hadn't been without her HUD in years . . she could barely even remember a time when readouts and information about her body and surroundings wasn't automatically displayed in her vision. She felt oddly naked without it.

An uncontrollable shiver racked her body. She hadn't felt so . . _empty_ in . . well, ever. What could possibly be causing this sensation?

A horrifying thought crossed her mind, and Tyria gulped. Could it be that she was . . **_no_**. No no no, she could not be dead! Sure, she felt like death warmed over, but - wait!

Frantically picking herself up and sitting up, the Electrian pressed a hand to her chest and waited.

 _Ba-boom. Ba-boom_. Her heart was still beating. Okay. That was good. She was alive. Phew.

Tyria frantically looked around, and took stock of her surroundings. She was surrounded by sand and rocks and - Lync! Her Vestal friend was lying in the sand a couple of metres away. And just nearby was the deactivated Ast-robot that she had dragged with her into . . wherever this place was.

But that wasn't important. She frantically got to her feet and dashed over to Lync, rolling him onto his back and checking his heartbeat. Okay, good - he was alive too. "Lync? Lync, can you hear me?" she shouted in his ear.

Slowly, the boy stirred, and opened his blue eyes. "Tyria? What happened? What . ." It was at this point that the salmon-haired wizard registered the fundamental _wrongness_ of their surroundings. "Hey. Something's weird here," He sat up, and Tyria climbed off him, sitting nearby.

"Yeah. There's no magic," the Electrian agreed.

"No magic? Like, none at all?" Lync blinked in surprise, frowning. "Is that even possible?" Frantically, he raised his left arm and checked the white/green device, trying to turn it on, but to no avail. "My Gauntlet's not working," he observed with a frown. "But it's powered by the ethernano in the air. It's designed to _never_ not work," he frowned, confused. "Where the hell are we?"

"I don't know," Tyria frowned, standing up. Lync followed suit. "Could it be a Reality Marble?" the Vestal suggested after a moment.

"A what?"

"It's a sort of pocket world that a very powerful wizard can create at will, trapping his opponents within a world of his own creation. I learnt about it at the College," Lync explained.

"Close, but not quite. Perhaps I can explain?" the same familiar voice as before sounded as a man appeared in front of them. He was dressed in white robes that hung loose around his chest, revealing a tan-coloured shirt that bore a black ouroboros on the chest. His hair was a shock of white that rose into two spikes that vaguely resembles animal ears, and hung around his neck otherwise. His eyes were yellow, and a set of red markings ran down his face.

"The heck?" Tyria blinked, suddenly placing the familiarity of the voice. Those red markings, that white hair . . . but that was impossible.

"Tyria? Who is that guy and why is _Kit_ doing a Yokai Unison with him?" Lync questioned.

The man's face contorted in disgust. "Yes . . you would be familiar with my counterpart," he tched in irritation. "I suppose I should explain. See, the three of us are not currently in Earth Land. Instead, I should welcome you all to the parallel dimension of Edolas!" he declared with a malign smile.

Lync blinked. "Edo-what?"

"Edolas. A parallel universe to your Earth Land where things are very different. However, an odd phenomena that has been identified in Edolas is that every person in Earth Land has a counterpart somewhere in Edolas," Monday explained. "However, there are no magical creatures in Edolas, therefore the magical creatures of your world are, in this world, humans. Which makes me this world's version of your friend's pet yokai,"

Tyria blinked, trying to wrap her head around this. "Wha . . . huh?"

"What about our magic? What's up with that?" Lync questioned.

"It's a very curious thing, but there is a lot less magic in Edolas than there is in Earth Land. As a matter of fact, I think it might now be the case that there is none left _at all_ ," the man explained.

"So . . you're a human version of Kit," Tyria ascertained, before she had a thought. "Wait - why did you bring us here?"

"To kill you. Why else would I transport the both of you into an alternate universe where you are powerless?" the counterpart asked.

"But you could have done that back on Earth Land, when we were incapacitated, Kit," Lync pointed out, folding his arms. "Why bring us here, where you're just as powerless as us?"

"For fun. I like to play with my toys before I break them," Edo-Kit explained. "And please, call me Monday. I am not your friend, and I would not like it if you thought of me as such. Oh, also," He raised a hand, and a silver magic circle appeared in it. "You're not quite correct about me being as powerless as you are. There are these wonderful little things called X-mitter pills that allow a wizard to use magic in Edolas as easily as they would in Earth Land, and I, of course, have taken one. Unfortunately, though, I believe you are fresh out,"

Tyria gulped. This was bad.

"Um," Lync clenched his fists. "Any ideas?"

"One," Tyria admitted. "Scatter!" she shouted, dashing to her left and tearing away. Lync, agreeing entirely, went right.

Monday chuckled. "This _is_ going to be fun,"

A spear of silver energy appeared in his hand, and he threw it with unerring precision at Tyria. Within seconds, it cut through her thigh and sent her collapsing to the ground with a scream, dissipating and leaving a gaping gash in the side of her combat trousers. Without her magic to dampen the pain, she collapsed, stunned.

Monday smirked. She would keep. His eyes drifted to the other wizard he had drawn into his sandbox, making for a rocky outcropping. He would be more fun now.

~P's E~

Tyria's scream echoed through the desert for miles around, for anyone in the area to hear.

And he did. "Was that . ."

~P's E~

Monday ran across the desert in pursuit of Lync, kicking up sprays of sand in his wake. A smile split his face as he leapt into the air, delivering a booted blow to Lync's backside.

The Vestal spun and, on reflex, shouted, "Airnvention: Rocket!"

Nothing happened, and the Kairos chuckled. "You don't get it, do you? Your magic simply doesn't work here. Edolas saps every drop of magic energy from a wizard who hasn't taken an X-mitter,"

Lync gritted his teeth, back-pedalling to face off with the wizard. Suddenly, a thought struck him. "Altered physics, huh? I wonder if that means what it does in Vestroia," With a flourish, he pulled a ball from his pocket and ripped it between his fingers, before spinning on his feet and throwing it at the ground between them. "Bakugan, BRAWL!"

The spinning ball flew in a streak of green light, hit the ground, bounced . . . and failed to open.

"Aluze?" Lync frowned. "Aluze, stand!"

The End of Monday cocked a curious eyebrow.

"Stand, you hunk of junk!" the Vestal shouted.

"Huh. People _do_ sometimes go insane in this place, but it usually takes longer," the white-haired man mused.

Lync stepped forwards and retrieved his Bakugan. "That normally works," he defended himself.

"Right. Well, anyway," Monday shrugged, manifesting another spear of energy. "I'm going to kill you now. Alright?"

"Hell no!" the Phoenix shouted, pocketing Aluze and instead pulling out a stack of cards. "I might not have my magic, and I might not have my Bakugan, but I still have -"

"Sideshow card tricks?" Monday guessed, folding his arms.

"This," Lync grinned, opening his Gauntlet and sliding a card into it. "Photon Blade!" he shouted, raising his arm, fully expecting a blade of green energy to manifest.

Nothing happened.

"That wouldn't happen to be a spell, now would it?" Monday questioned with a smirk.

"Oh, _come on_!" Lync snapped.

~P's E~

Doing her best to block out the pain in her leg, Tyria had crawled back to the damaged robot she had dragged with her into Edolas. "Okay," she muttered, eyeing the metal frame. "If this doesn't work, nothing will,"

Opening her mouth as wide as it would go, the Electrian tore a chunk of the exterior plating off with her teeth, chewed, and swallowed.

"Anything?" she muttered, before sensing a faint hum in her chest, and for a second a blue display flickered across her vision, before going dead again.

Tyria grinned, taking another bite of technology. It was something.

As she ate, she felt the injury on her leg slowly stitch itself back together with a curious tickling sensation, and stifled a chuckle. But, more importantly, she felt the stirrings of magic within her, and eventually she'd regained enough power to reactivate her TechType's core systems.

As soon as she did, a warning flashed in her vision that she was running low on magic energy.

"Well, no duh," Tyria tched, consuming the last remaining pieces of the robot, and checking her power level. Seven percent charge. That was disappointing; she needed at least fifteen percent to activate Mark II, and forty percent minimum for Mark III.

"It'll have to do," she shook her head, picking herself up. Already she could sense the alien environment around her starting to leech magic out of her as though she were a wet sponge in the sunlight. She'd have to make this fast.

In the distance, she spotted Lync frantically trying to avoid everything Monday threw at him, and grinned. "TechType: Machine Gun II,"

~P's E~

The first Monday knew of his prey's recovery was when bullets peppered his side. He span, allowing a shield of magic energy to soak up the projectiles, and was more than a little surprised to see Tyria on her feet, charging towards him.

He was shocked. "The hell?"

Quickly recovering, he created a magic spear in his hand and threw it at her, but the Electrian commanded, "TechType: Force Field!" and generated a shield in her left hand that deflected the projectile.

"You; wait there," he commanded Lync, before turning fully to face Tyria. Holding his arms out, a pair of short swords appeared in his hands, and he dashed forwards to meet the attacker, a magic shield still soaking up Tyria's attacks.

"TechType: Chainsaw!" Tyria commanded, dispelling her Force Field and activating the new spell she had coded after the events on Mount Zheng. Her forearm lengthened into two blue strips with silver stripes and wheels between then, and a silver, jagged chain looped between them. Still peppering Monday with bullets, she brought up her Chainsaw to block his two-handed sword strike. The spinning, jagged edge bit into his magical weapons, tearing chunks out of them, and Monday hastily disengaged before his swords were ruined entirely.

"How are you doing that? No wizard can use magic in Edolas without an X-mitter pill!" the Kairos demanded, patching up his short swords and staying on the defensive.

"I guess I'm special, then," Tyria bitingly retorted, rotating around Monday's position and putting herself between him and Lync.

"Not special enough," Monday snorted, dropping a sword and producing a large mace. He lunged forwards again, swinging the spiked bludgeon towards her. The tech wizard brought her Chainsaw up to deflect the blow, but the sheer, staggering impact caught her off-guard and sent her staggering.

Almost too late, Tyria spotted the lingering sword thrusting under her guard towards her stomach, and used her Machine Gun to block the attack. The blade promptly caught in the rotating barrels, fouling them up and carving several gashes into it. The force dispelled it, but it also damaged the Machine Gun enough that it automatically deactivated, and Tyria received a pop-up warning her that her Machine Gun II had been damaged enough to need repairs by her system. Which meant she would be unable to use it for several hours.

Lacking any better options, the girl raised a leg and kneed Monday in the groin.

The Kairos staggered, losing his mace and toppling backwards, clutching at his private parts. "You . . _bitch_!" he hissed, clenching his teeth.

"Takes one to know one," Tyria snarkily retorted, before pausing. Wow. Phoenix's Eye was rubbing off on her. She never would have said something like that six months ago.

Deciding to save the self-reflection for later, she charged forwards, thrusting her Chainsaw towards him. Still stunned from her low blow, Monday only narrowly dodged, and Tyria leapt sideways and turned in mid-air, continuing to face him. "What is up with you? You fight like an amateur! If I had my full arsenal, you'd already be down for the count!" she challenged.

"But you don't! Do you?" the End of Monday challenged.

"He's got a point," Lync pointed out, keeping on his feet and close to Tyria. "If he always drags his opponents into this Edolas place before fighting them, he wouldn't need much combat skill to win against most wizards. Almost all of his opponents would be helpless without their magic," Tyria blinked. He was right. She hadn't considered that.

"And, once again, you've made a rather crucial error in your assumptions," Monday pointed out, flexing his fingers.

"What's that?"

"You believe that I've been going all out until now," the Kairos snorted, stamping his foot. Suddenly, an octagon of giant magic sword blades sprouted around him, forming a thick wall of glowing blue that hid Monday from view.

"What?" Tyria blinked.

And then the sword facing them began to collapse forwards, falling towards them at a rate that made it abundantly clear it was about to crush them. Tyria dodged left while Lync, behind her, back-pedalled. Both manoeuvres brought them out of the attack's impact radius, but as soon as it had, and Monday was in view again, a swarth of energy arrows blasted out of the gap.

Buffeted by the attack, Tyria tried to reactivate her Force Field, but as soon as she opened her mouth an arrow flew straight between her cheeks. Overwhelmed by the onslaught, she collapsed, falling onto her back as her Chainsaw shut down.

A small whine told her that taking that last attack had drained the last dregs of the magic power she had regained from eating the robot. She was running on fumes, both physically and magically.

"Well well. Is that it?" Monday questioned, and Tyria struggled to raise her head to glare at him. If this was where she died . . . no way she'd do any less than retain as much dignity as possible.

"I suppose so," the Kairos smirked, manifesting another sword. "This was fun, really. But you simply don't have what it takes to match me in my world," He stood over her, blade raised, and was seconds away from driving it into her chest -

And then a blur of khaki, yellow, and chrome flew in from her left and knocked Monday away, screaming, "NO FUCKING WAY!"

"Huh?" she muttered, gingerly turning her head to see Monday on the ground, being pinned by a teenage boy wearing a khaki jacket and tan-coloured trousers, as well as a set of goggles whose leather straps she could see pinning his shaggy blond hair in place.

"Not again!" the boy shouted, raising his left arm, which Tyria noticed had a strange silvery colour to it, and punching Monday in the face with it. "I don't care who the fuck you are or what the hell is going on here, but no fucking way I'm losing a single member of my guild again!"

His . . what? None of the things he was saying made any sense. Who _was_ this boy?

The boy nailed Monday with another punch to the face, and blood spurted from his nose.

"Um," Lync tentatively walked towards their unknown ally, looking slightly disgusted by the violence he was showing. "I think he's down,"

"Bullshit," the boy spat in his direction, and Lync suddenly flinched, taking a step back in shock. However, Tyria's shock grew as the boy unslung a rifle that she hadn't noticed before as he stood up and levelled the barrel, point-blank, at the End of Monday's heart. "He's down when he's dead,"

"No!" Tyria squeaked. "D-don't kill him!" Monday was the only one who could open a portal back to Earth Land. If he died . . . she and Lync could be stuck in this Edolas place forever.

The boy paused at this, and the battered Electrian took the chance to sit up. "Who are you?" she asked.

Lync gulped.

The boy turned around, and Tyria gasped. That face, those eyes . . . it couldn't be.

"What?" Pierce Kynigós asked, raising a confused eyebrow and shrugging with his metal arm. "Don't you recognise me, Tyria?"

Tyria could only blink dumbly. ". . . what?"

"Remember what Monday was saying about there being counterparts to everyone we know in Edolas?" Lync not-so-quietly whispered. "I think that's Pierce's counterpart,"

And suddenly Tyria remembered what Grace and Garrotte had been talking about a few weeks ago. The alternate world . . of _Edolas_. How had she not remembered before? . . . granted, she'd been fighting for her life, and this was the first chance she'd had to think about it, and at the time she'd mostly brushed Grace's story off as being unimportant, even if the whole thing hadn't been made up . . . and suddenly Grace's description of 'scary Pierce' came back to her.

A metal arm, a rifle. It matched the boy in front of her.

Meanwhile, Pierce Kynigós had been drawing his own conclusions based on what Lync had just said, and the fact that the deer-in-headlights look this Tyria sported was totally uncharacteristic of the Tyria he knew.

"You're the Tyria from that weird other dimension I heard about, aren't you?" Pierce ascertained. "With the other Natsu Dragion, Lucy Ashley and Wendy Clariass,"

"Um, Dragneel, Marvel, and . ." Tyria paused. She just realised that she didn't actually know Lucy's surname. That was embarrassing.

"Oh yeah? I guess you are, then," Pierce sighed, gripping his gun in both hands. Tyria flinched - she'd been shot before, and wasn't eager to experience it again - but relaxed as he pulled a cloth out of a pocket and began polishing the barrel. She noticed that he constantly kept one eye on Monday.

"What's it like? Your world?" Kynigós asked.

"It's nice. We have our share of problems, but life's pretty good, all things considered," Tyria commented.

"Says you," Lync huffed, but Tyria just rolled her eyes. "Oh, shut up, Lync. Your 'I miss the College' routine is getting old,"

"And who's he? I never met anyone who looks like him," Pierce addressed the question to Tyria, which Lync found a little mortifying. "Name's Lync Volan, star pupil of Headmaster Atsphuria's College of Practical Education!"

"He's a friend of mine from my homeland," Tyria added, and Kynigós nodded, thoughtful. "Oh yeah, Tyria was an immigrant. Never really thought about that,"

"Yeah," Tyria nodded, taking a few tentative steps towards the other boy. This was strange . . on the one hand, she remembered how Grace had described the other Pierce from their sole encounter. But . . to her, he didn't seem so bad.

"You're afraid of me," Kynigós observed.

"What? No! I . . I just . . ." Tyria trailed off. "Grace told me she met you and that you scared her," she finally explained.

"Grace?" the boy cocked an eyebrow. "Who's that?"

"Tweenage girl, about this tall, green hair?" Tyria frowned.

"I don't know any Grace. She wasn't in my Phoenix's Eye," Pierce shook his head, before pausing. "Though that does sound familiar . . oh, right. The little crybaby who was with that other Natsu in Fairy Tail. I suppose that was her. Why'd she go off like that, anyway?"

The Electrian processed this, frowning at Grace being called a crybaby. "Because in our world, Grace is our Pierce's younger sibling. And she's clingy, too,"

The parallel Pierce seemed legitimately shocked at this. "Younger - you're kidding. She looked nothing like me!" he exclaimed, briefly comparing Grace's grass green hair, tanned skin, and angular features to his own arian looks, before humming thoughtfully. "So that's why she said she was 'mine'," He blinked as something occurred to him. "Does that mean _I_ have a sister running around somewhere that I don't know about?"

"Don't count on it," Lync shrugged, starting to get fed up with being ignored. "Grace is adopted. Obviously in this world, that never happened,"

"Oh," Kynigós sighed. "Shame . . would have been nice to know there was someone left in this world who could have cared about me,"

"Left?" Tyria parroted, raising an eyebrow.

"Right, I guess you wouldn't know," the hunter nodded. "A while ago, the magic of this world started running out. So the King outlawed all wizard's guilds and commanded that we all disband. It wasn't a popular sentiment," he explained. "So most of the big guilds went rogue, and we got labeled Dark Guilds. Including Phoenix's Eye. So they started to eliminate us,"

"Oh," The blood drained from Tyria's face, and her mouth formed a small 'o' as she realised what this meant. "So . . you . ."

"I'm the only member of Phoenix's Eye - this world's Phoenix's Eye, anyway - left," Pierce Kynigós sighed.

The conversation lapsed, as no one knew what to say in response to this.

"So I'm guessing that it's this guy's fault that you're here and not back in your world," Kynigós gestured to the unconscious Monday, and Tyria nodded. "His big idea is that he brings his enemies here, where they can't use magic and are rendered helpless. Then he kills them with ease,"

"Good strategy," the hunter admitted. "Unfortunately for him, I happened to be around. I guess you'll need him to send you back, then?"

"Probably," Lync admitted. "Though I don't know how we're going to get him to do that for us,"

"You two leave that to me," Kynigós smirked, raising his gun. "I guess I get one last chance to be a loyal member of Phoenix's Eye,"

A sudden thought struck Tyria. "Why don't you come back with us?" she suggested, her eyebrows raised. "Nothing ever happened to our Phoenix's Eye. I'm sure you'd fit right in,"

Kynigós mirthlessly chuckled. "And _that_ , is why I can't," he shook his head.

"Huh?"

" 'Fit right in'," Kynigos sardonically repeated. "The Tyria I knew never gave a shit about fitting in. She was loud and brash and loved to blow things up and . ." He sighed, trailing off. "You aren't her. I wouldn't want to join another Phoenix's Eye, with other versions of my friends. It would be like trying to replace them. And I won't have that," he ascertained.

"I guess that's fair enough," Tyria sighed. "But you wouldn't have to think of it as replacing them. Maybe more like . . making sure what happened to you doesn't happen to anyone else?"

Kynigós mulled this over. "There'd still be another me. Two Pierces in one Phoenix's Eye. That just sounds like a recipe for . . I dunno, quantum disaster or something. I'm sure I heard Sarph talk about shit like that once or twice,"

A sudden groan interrupted the conversation, and the hunter leapt up, bringing his rifle to bear and levelling it at Monday's face. The man started, going cross-eyes in an attempt to look at the weapon.

"Alright, here's how things are gonna go. You're gonna open the portal to send these two back to their home, and in exchange I won't blow your fucking brains out," Kynigós spat.

The Kairos' eyes widened in fear, and he nervously nodded. "O-okay," he accepted the terms.

"Well? Get on with it,"

Nodding, Monday raised his arms, and Pierce carefully climbed off him, ensuring that his gun was constantly trained between the man's eyes as he stood up, lifting his arms into the sky. The blueness overhead rapidly dimmed, as silvery storm clouds spread outwards from their position. Kynigós watched in amazement. "So this is Fiorean magic," he breathed, watching as the storm clouds spread and began to open in the centre, creating an inverse whirlpool in the sky.

"Anima, open!" Monday barked, drawing a circle in the sky above them, and with a flash of lightning, the whirlpool funnelled downwards to meet the gateway, which immediately came alive with a flash of light.

"It's done," he declared, looking visibly tired from the effort.

"Good," the hunter nodded, and fired.

There was an explosive recoil, and Monday collapsed backwards, his brains splattering across the dirt underfoot as blood leaked from the holes in his skull.

Tyria gasped. "What did you do that for?"

"He was a liability. If he went through the portal with you, he'd be free to wreak more shit on your world's wizards. And if he didn't, then he'd eventually just open another portal and escape back to Earth Land on his own terms, and then you'd have the same problem. Killing him is the only solution," Kynigós explained with a small, perverse smile.

The Electrian gulped. Her Pierce - _by which she meant the Pierce she knew! Not that he belonged to her or that she wanted him or anything!_ \- didn't shy away from killing, at least, killing humans, but he preferred to use it as a last resort. He'd never murder someone in cold blood like this.

Lync frowned and was probably about to say something, but the portal hanging over their heads crackled and began to wobble.

"That thing looks like it won't last long. You two should go," Kynigós stated.

"Right," Tyria nodded, holding out a hand, and Lync took it. In the absence of any better options, they jumped in sync, and the power of the portal caught them, lifting them into the air and into the vortex. As soon as they'd passed through the circle above them, the two were gone, sucked away into the rift.

Kynigós watched them go, and shrugged. "I guess that's that. So long," He was about to turn and leave, when the ground underfoot seemed to tremble. Pausing, the hunter watched as several specks of dust began to rise into the air, before being sucked into the shaking portal. Next, a trio of rocks the size of his fist began to levitate, before following their brethren.

Suddenly, the ground directly beneath the portal cracked, and the crack spread, dancing around the boy's feet and looping back on itself to form a complete, jagged, shape.

And then the ground underfoot, or, at least, the chunk of it Pierce was standing on, began to shake, break away, and rise from its position.

"Oh, shit," the hunter muttered, ducking and trying to jump off, but some incredible suction held him in place, pulling him into the portal.

His head broke through the surface of the circle, by now wildly distorted and quivering with power, and he knew it was too late.

~P's E~

With a crash, Tyria and Lync landed, back in the tunnel where they had been before.

Both were delighted to find that their magic had returned, and Tyria grinned, watching the readouts of her TechType systems revitalise her. "I'm back online!" she crowed.

"Oh, whoa," Lync gasped, spotting the massive hole leading up to an angry-looking sky that had been opened above then by the Anima.

A rock fell out of the debris and hit Tyria's shoulder, before bouncing off and falling to the ground. "We should get moving. I remember that map, the emergency exit isn't far away,"

"Alright. Lead the way," Lync nodded, and Tyria grinned, dashing off into the tunnels, torn with her teammate following her.

A minute passed, and, above, the storm containing the last vestiges of the Anima crackled and warped. For a second, it split open, blinding light spilling into the world from beyond, and if anyone had been able to look into that light without it blinding them, they might have seen two shapes tumble out of it. A chunk of rock, and a humanoid figure.

Pierce Kynigós grimaced, realising he had somehow ended up several hundred metres in the air, and pulled a cord in his hunter's pack. Immediately, a massive silk canopy emerged from a hidden pocket in it, billowing outwards and upwards until it formed a parachute above him. This wasn't the first time he'd fallen from high places (granted he usually fell off flying beasts or floating islands, not interdimensional portals), and he liked to be prepared.

"So," the hunter mused, looking around at the ruinous landscape beneath him. "I guess this is Earth Land,"

A/N

 **A/N**

 **And we can finally welcome Pierce Kynigós to the main canon of Phoenix's Eye! No longer will he be relegated to brief half-chapters thrown in at the end of arcs!**

 **Okay, everyone, hands up. Who thought Monday would be a more formidable foe, akin to Bluenote Stinger? If you did, then I was successful in faking you out! Woo-hoo!**

 **So, Edolas Wendy never got a canon surname (and to think I gave every Edolas counterpart to my wizards a surname back in Chapter 33, when only Natsu Dragion, Lucy Ashley, Grey Surge and Erza Knightwalker got one in canon. Silly me.), so I just came up with a surname for her based on my usual method of creating surnames. Which is secret. Because reasons.**

 **And I suppose I should address another thing that I've no doubt people are gonna be frowning at me over; why did eating tech in Edolas give Tyria magic when eating fire in Edolas did nothing for Natsu?**

 **I assure you that there is a good, sensible reason for this. And it is as follows;**

 **[SPOILERS]**

 **Seriously, though, you'll find out eventually and it will make what I, at least, think is sense. So yeah. Peace!**


	62. The Garuda's Final Flight

Chapter 62: The Garuda's Final Flight

 **So, did everyone really think I wouldn't post a second chapter this week to celebrate Easter? If you did, then . . April Fool's! :P**

 **Also, apologies for the delay. Eternity's timequake in this chapter totally slowed down time locally for me and made me post the chapter a day and a half late. I definitely didn't forget or anything. It's all Eternity's fault. Undoubtedly.**

 **A/N**

While all sorts of chaos had been going on underground, Totomaru had been stealthily making his way towards the Garuda. It was an arduous process, but he had successfully remained undetected as he reached the edge of town and looked up at the airship, hovering a few hundred metres away, with its huge, red/white canopy above it.

Wringing his hands, he generated a lasso of purple fire in his hands, before swinging it upwards.

The flaming rope splattered against the side of the airship's hull and slid off, falling at his feet.

Totomaru frowned and gathered the lasso up. This time, holding the noose in one hand, he generated a plume of adhesive orange fire and coated the end with it, before throwing again.

This time, the rope caught the side of the ship and stuck fast due to the glue-like orange flame, and, after a couple of tugs, Totomaru began to climb. Eventually, he reached the end of the rope and quickly coated his hands and feet with more of the orange fire, before latching onto the side of the ship and beginning to climb up. He let his flaming rope dissipate behind him, he had no use for it anymore.

Soon, the fire wizard had clambered onto the main deck, and looked around. Predictably, it was deserted. "Sensho and Astro are probably both beneath decks," he muttered irritably, beelining for the nearest ladder and, upon reaching it, clambering down.

"Totomaru, hi!" Sensho immediately greeted him, waving with a hand that was clutching a teapot.

"Good, you're alright," the man breathed a sigh of relief, smiling as he crossed the room, passing through the large, open space that usually played host to the Sonic Boom. However, the magic-mobile was still lying, forgotten, in Diamauros' town square, and the space was instead taken up by a myriad of sleeping bags, one of which Totomaru himself had used on the overnight trip from Magnolia.

Their unfortunate patient, Fred, was still lying, unconscious, in a bed, and Sensho was hovering over him. "What are you talking about? Is something wrong? Astro did just - well, that," he gestured to what Totomaru recognised as the telepresence droid Astro had been using, which was lying, dormant, on another bed, somewhat to his amusement.

"You put the robot to bed," the fire wizard stated with a chuckle.

"Well, he just stopped moving and keeled over. I, I didn't know what to do. I'm not equipped to be a doctor for robots!" Sensho shook his head frantically, his eyes wide.

"Hey. Relax," Totomaru commanded him, and Sensho slumped. "You're right, sorry. I . . I'm not good in high-pressure environments,"

Totomaru whistled through his teeth. "Well, you're going to hate what's going on outside, then," he commented.

"W-why? What's happening?" the timid Tea Wizard questioned.

"We're under attack. Some sort of dark guild whose leader has history with Master," the man shook his head. "I was counting on Astro being able to get a message to the rest of the guild, or even Fairy Tail, asking for help. But if he's down, then . ."

"Under attack, huh?" The two were interrupted by an unknown voice, and both turned to look at the source.

Fred had spontaneously sat up, with his eyes still closed, and grinned. "Sounds like my friends are doing their job well. I'll have to remember to congratulate them,"

"Your . . what?" Sensho gasped.

"Oh - right, damnit. I'm so sorry, I guess I forgot to properly introduce myself," the boy commented, keeping his eyes shut. "I'm Fred, Kairos End's End of Wednesday. As one of Kairos End's Ends of Days, it's my sworn duty to destroy Phoenix's Eye and kill everyone affiliated with them. Or something like that, anyway. I'm a little fuzzy on the details," he shrugged with a broad grin, rolling up his T-shirt sleeve and showing a black symbol of a snake biting on its own tail. The Guild Mark of Kairos End. "Anyway. It's nice to meet you!"

Totomaru gulped, his face draining of blood. A shiver ran through Sensho's body, and he made a noise akin to a tortured mouse with a bad head cold.

"Aren't you going to introduce yourselves?" Fred asked with a slight shrug. "I can't see you, remember?"

"I am Totomaru, fire wizard of -" Suddenly, the man had an idea, and a small smile crept across his face as he seamlessly finished, "the Phantom Lord guild,"

The orange-haired boy seemed to blink without moving his eyelids, confused. "Phantom Lord? Really? Does that mean I'm in the wrong place? Oh, man, I am so embarrassed. Master's gonna be so sore that I infiltrated the wrong guild,"

The fire wizard gently squeezed Sensho's hand and gave him a reassuring nod, and the highly strung Tea Wizard took deep breaths. "Yeah, that's a shame," Totomaru shrugged helplessly. "But, what can you do? I guess you should just get out of here and go find these Phoenix's Eye people,"

Fred hummed thoughtfully. "You're right. Suppose I should, then," Seemingly without any difficulty from his lack of sight whatsoever, he swung himself off the bed, stood up, and started walking towards the ladder. "Hey, wanna see something cool?" he challenged.

"I don't see why not," Leaving Sensho behind, Totomaru followed the boy as he climbed up the ladder and onto the deck. He _could not believe_ that this was working.

Above decks, Totomaru watched as the boy stood, balanced perfectly, on the railing, and spoke. "I guess I should open my eyes now. Wouldn't want to fall, after all," he commented, turning his face back towards the Phoenix and slowly sliding his eyelids open.

Totomaru gasped.

Instead of eyes, Fred had a pair of soulless black orbs set into his face, and they raked him, seeming to penetrate into his soul.

"Cool, huh? But that's not the fun part. This is," Fred grinned, and fell backwards off the railing.

Stunned, Totomaru dashed forwards. Had he just won the easiest fight in history?

And, suddenly, a huge vulture, covered in matted black feathers and bearing a serrated silver beak, with the same soulless black orbs for eyes, rose into view, hovering in mid-air in defiance of flight physics. "Boo!" Fred's voice issued from the mouth of the massive bird.

Totomaru gasped. "Huh?"

"I'm a shapeshifter! Cool, eh?" Fred's voice echoed from the monster's mouth.

Dumbly, the fire wizard slowly nodded. That was . . unexpected. Shapeshifters, wizards who could freely alter the shape of their body as they saw fit, were extremely rare, as it was a very advanced style of transformation magic that could take many years to master . . which meant 'Fred', assuming that was even his name, was likely a _lot_ older than he chose to appear.

"I love the look on you people's faces when that happens," Fred chuckled. "Anyway! Sorry again for wasting your time! I'll go now!" he declared, diving under the ship's hull and emerging on the other side, before flapping away.

Totomaru blinked a couple of times, before shaking his head and remembering that his friends were in trouble. He might have just seen off one enemy (somehow), but there were still others. He had to get help.

So the man ran for the airship controls, clattering up the steps, swinging around the balustrades and grabbing the tiller. He was, of course, familiar with the airship's controls and, after taking a moment to identify all of the ropes and controls that would normally take a team of seven or eight people to operate, began launching ropes of purple fire in every direction, latching each one and arranging them in a network around him so that he could single-handedly fly the ship.

With a satisfied smile, he pressed a foot down on the accelerator beneath the tiller, and, with a whine, the magic engines Astro had installed on the craft hummed to life, starting the airship's forwards motion. He needed to find a nearby town and get in contact with the Magic Council, so that they could send aid. Hopefully, they wouldn't be too late.

Rapidly picking up speed, the airship left the perimeter of the ruined town beneath, and cruised over the forest nearby. Totomaru honestly wasn't completely sure which direction he should go in, but right now his heading was primarily 'away from the shapeshifter bent on killing him'.

Hearing the airship's engines, Fred the giant bird cast a stray glance back at the large vehicle. "What a nice guy," he mused, thinking of Totomaru as he eyed the giant red canopy - and blinked.

Right there, printed on the side of the bright red canopy in white, what what Fred immediately recognised as the Phoenix's Eye Guild mark.

The vulture-like creature paused. "Wait a second,"

~P's E~

It was around now that Master Eternity, Guild Master of Kairos' End, who had been searching the ruins while dragging the entrapped Master Feng Chriona of Phoenix's Eye behind him, found something.

"Here. There is a concentration of magical energy at this exact spot," he declared, stabbing his staff at the base of a ruined wall. "Is this where you hid it? The Sempiternal Phoenix?"

"Is a perfectly ordinary and completely random patch of dust where I hid the Sempiternal Phoenix?" Feng parroted right back at him. "Unless I have developed chronic amnesia, I believe the answer is no,"

"We'll see about that," Eternity growled, gripping his staff with both hands, before driving it into the ground. "I can sense it . . . the magical energies . . no!" he suddenly snapped, pulling his staff away.

"I tried to tell you," Feng nonchalantly shrugged.

"Ugh. I suppose this is a collection point for residual energies given off by the Sempiternal Phoenix or some such nonsense. More Chriona trickery," Eternity hissed. "I won't allow this nebula of magic to interfere with my search," he declared, making the butt of his staff glow white as he raised it into the air.

Feng blinked and gulped, suddenly realising what the man, in this state, was going to do. "No! Don't!" she shouted, but she was too late, and the man drove the butt of his staff into the ground - where a white ball briefly appeared, before shattering, dispersing a wave of crackling white energy in all directions that swept over them.

"What? What was that?" Eternity demanded, looking around and glaring at his fellow Guild Master.

"You fool. You just shattered a nexus of pent-up Sempiternal energy - you've started a timequake!" Feng shouted.

"What? What was that?" Eternity demanded, looking around and glaring at his fellow Guild Master.

"You see what I mean?" the woman groaned.

"What are you talking about? For once in your life, give me a straight answer!" Eternity yelled, looking daggers at Feng.

"You see what I mean?" the woman groaned.

"Oh, I see. Breaking that concentration of energy created some sort of déjà-vu temporal shift. Remarkable," the End of All Days mused. "I will have to tell Hades about this. He'll be fascinated," he resolved.

"Hades?" Feng, released from the influence of time magic for the moment, gulped. "No, he of all people must _not_ be allowed to come here!"

"I will have to tell Hades about this. He'll be fascinated," he resolved.

"And you can't hear me. Lovely,"

~P's E~

Downstairs, Pierce and Grace were running at speed down the cavern, and

approaching the deceased carcass of a robot. "Jump on three!" Pierce shouted. "One . . two . ."

And then there was some sort of blip and suddenly they were past the robot and still running.

Grace skidded to a halt. "What was that?"

"Did you just teleport us?" Pierce asked, surprised. She'd been getting better with teleporting other people, but was still uncomfortable with it.

"Nope,"

"Weird," her brother commented, frowning.

~P's E~

Across the ruins, Pierce Kynigós saw the ground approaching. He tucked and rolled, landing on the ground with ease, as his parachute fell around him.

"Piece of cake," the hunter contentedly grinned.

And then there was a blip, and suddenly he was back in the air, approaching the ground. "What?" Kynigós frowned, looking around in confusion. As if his body was acting on its own, guided by its previous actions, he tucked and rolled, landing on the ground with ease, as his parachute fell around him.

"Piece of cake," the hunter contentedly grinned, before pausing as his smile dropped. "Why did I just say that? What just happened?" Suddenly nervous, the boy grasped the handle of his gun, instinctively seeking something familiar and certain. "Was that Earth Land magic? I might be in over my head here," Kynigós gulped.

He paused, spotting the fact that a small light on the grip of his gun had lit up. "Hey. The lacrima's got magic power," he blinked, before pulling off his backpack and sorting through it. "All my old magic stuff is fully charged!" he exclaimed, grinning. He hadn't had full charges on all of his gear at once for years. This had to be the work of Earth Land's apparently unlimited magic energy. Amazing.

Forget being in over his head. Pierce Kynigós was on the hunt.

~P's E~

Totomaru grinned. The Garuda was fast; no way Fred would catch up.

And then there was a blip, and suddenly he was back on the deck, standing next to Fred. "Huh?" he blinked, looking around in confusion. It was as though the last two minutes had never happened.

"Wait, how'd I get back here?" the End of Wednesday, luckily, seemed equally confused.

"I have no idea," Totomaru shrugged, knowing he had to get rid of Fred - again. "But you shouldn't let it distract you - better go find those Phoenix's Eye people, and tell them Phantom Lord sends their regards," he smoothly lied, hoping it would work again.

"Oh, no no no. As I was flying away, I spotted the most interesting thing on the side of your airship. The Phoenix's Eye Guild mark. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?" Fred nastily asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Uh - no, nothing. I don't know what you're talking about," Totomaru gulped, but his confidence had been shaken; he knew it, and so did Fred.

"Is that so?" Fred blinked. "Oh, alright then," he accepted, turning and taking a step - but then, he paused and rounded on the fire wizard again. "Wait. You wouldn't happen to be doing that _lying_ thing, would you? Master warned me you might try it,"

"Uh, no, of course not," Totomaru declared, realising that the Kairos was, obviously, exceptionally gullible. Apparently he was old enough to have gone a bit senile.

"Oh. Sorry about that, then, I guess it was a bit rude," the shapeshifter awkwardly admitted, shrugging, but then a thought struck him. "Unless you were lying about that. Which would mean that you were -" he gasped, and uttered, in the most horrified tone he could muster, " _lying about lying?!_ Oh, for shame!"

"No no no, that's definitely not what's going on here!" Totomaru reassured him, but Fred wasn't having any of it. "And now you're lying, about lying, _about lying_! I might be a dark wizard, but you, sir, are a _bad friend_!" he spat as though it were the worst insult imaginable.

"Unless I'm not lying at all, which would mean your accusations are all baseless," Totomaru reasoned, having regained some of his confidence.

The End of Wednesday paused, and considered this. The Phoenix could almost see the gears in his head turning.

"Fine! Whatever!" he declared. "Ugh, maybe you are with Phoenix's Eye, maybe you aren't. But I know that Master wasn't lying when he told me that he didn't mind if I killed other people, as long as I didn't kill anyone who he needed. And I'm . . mostly certain he doesn't need you!" he declared, glaring at Totomaru. "You've confused me so much, I barely even know what I'm talking about anymore! But there's one thing I'm pretty-mostly certain of, and it's that things will get a lot simpler when you're dead! So have at it!" he declared, morphing his arm into a steel blade, before charging at Totomaru.

With a flourish, the fire wizard drew his katana and parried, blocking the blow. The two struggled for a moment, before breaking away. Totomaru skidded backwards, and, with green fire licking at his free hand, sent a burst of the slimy flames at Fred's feet.

Grimacing, Fred tried to charge at him again, but slipped over and fell flat on his face. Seeing the opening this gave him, Totomaru leapt forwards and prepared to launch a blast of normal red fire at him - but then there was a blip, and he felt drained as though he had just launched an attack, but there was no evidence that he had done so. Even the flames had vanished from his sword.

Fred picked himself up, wiping the fire off his legs, and strode away from it. "You're lame," he declared, charging forwards.

"What's going on?" Totomaru blinked at the failure of his attack, before frantically blocking Fred. Clenching a fist, he generated a prick of intense white fire in his hand, before lifting it to eye level with his palm out and opening his fist.

Fred screamed and disengaged with his eyes screwed shut tight, the blinding intensity of the luminous white fire having stunned him. Lunging forwards, Totomaru reversed his grip and punched him in the chest with the hand that gripped his sword, while spraying a mist of orange fire across the ground Fred was about to fall onto - which he promptly did, and stuck fast. Sheathing his sword in a fluid motion, Totomaru redoubled the spray of fiery glue now that he could work with both hands, and stuck the Kairos fast to the ground.

"That should keep him incapacitated for a bit," Totomaru nodded, dashing for the tiller as he had before. Back to the plan, then; take the Garuda out of Diamauros, find a nearby town from where he could contact the rest of the guild and/or the Magic Council, and rescue Master and the S-Class wizards.

He reached the tiller and began casting around, identifying every role and pulley around the ship he would need to operate to keep the ship running - and froze, hearing a crack.

Fred was growing. His muscles swelled, growing green fur as his skin turned to a garish shade of pink. The deck he was still stuck to cracked, Totomaru's magic doing its job a bit too well, and, with a mental command Totomaru dispelled the spell.

At the far end of the ship, Sensho's head peeked out of the prow hatch, squeaked, and vanished back below decks. Totomaru groaned to himself - as happy as he was that he wasn't alone in this fight, why did his partner have to be Sensho, the Tea Wizard, of all the wizards in Phoenix's Eye? Even Blanca would have made a better partner than him, she was deranged but at least Plastic Magic was useful in a fight. The worst Tea Magic could do was give someone a mild burn from the hot water.

Luckily, Fred, now a fully grown, hulking Forest Vulcan, hadn't noticed him, instead standing and fixating on Totomaru. With an angered bellow, the Vulcan dropped to all fours, pounding down the lower deck and preparing to fling himself over the stairs that led to the elevated tiller and at Totomaru. The fire wizard set his jaw, immediately realising what to do and quickly making a couple of alterations to the ropes of purple fire that he had started to weave around the Garuda once more.

Fred jumped, prepared to bring his fists down on the Phoenix and commence beating him to death - but suddenly, two ropes of purple fire lashed from either side and caught him, rapidly being knotted with a third from directly in front of him and arresting his momentum, causing the shapeshifter to stop inches from Totomaru's folded arms.

The fohawked Phoenix inspected him for a moment, before a smile played across his lips and he poked the Vulcan on the nose with a contemptuous "Boop,"

And, with that command, the third rope of elastic, purple fire released, causing the other two to snap taut, throwing the Vulcan away. Launched out of the improvised slingshot, Fred was sent rocketing away from the ship, where Totomaru heard him land in the scraggly woodland beneath with a distant _thud_.

"Well, that takes care of that," the fire wizard smiled, before returning his attentions to spinning, like a spider, a web of purple flames that would enable him to single-handedly control the Garuda from a single position of power.

Over the next few minutes, the Garuda's engines hummed to life and turned, settling on a course that Totomaru hoped led to a nearby village that was inhabited. In the corner of his eye he thought he spotted a falcon flying upwards in the distance, but paid it no mind as the Garuda cruised over the forest. Considering the chaos that had been going on around him ever since those Kairos End people had arrived, everything seemed remarkably peaceful.

After about ten minutes, Sensho worked up the nerve to rejoin him above decks. "He's gone, right?" the Tea Wizard questioned, and Totomaru nodded. "We're home clear. We just need to find a town and call for help,"

"Yeah. Call for help. I can do that," Sensho nodded, sounding quite reassured at the prospect. Nothing dangerous about calling for help, surely.

~P's E~

Eve and Blanca stumbled out of a corridor and realised that the cave they had just entered contained a large, gold/green circle inlaid into the ground in the centre. "We made it," Eve deflated in relief, but Blanca paused. "Wait. I hear something," she frowned, and the Celestial wizard was immediately on high alert, looking around as though she expected the very rocks themselves to come alive and try to kill her - which, perhaps, was not entirely unreasonable.

At the other end of the cave, Lorus and Wesley emerged from one of the other entrances and drew up short, seeing their guildmates. Lorus broke into a wide smile. "Well, if it isn't the seductive villainess whose heart the hero holds dear? How auspicious that we should meet here,"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. You can be a loon some other time, right now, we have to get out of here," Blanca declared, before pausing. "That is, assuming that this thing isn't broken like every other invention of Astro's down here,"

"One way to find out, he shrugged with a faint air of concern," Wesley weighed in, striding forwards. Lorus blinked, and dashed after him. "Now hold on just a second, the hero is always supposed to take the lead! What sort of sidekick are you?" he irritably demanded.

"Come on. Just because the trial's on hold, doesn't mean I'll let anyone else beat us!" Blanca exclaimed as she grabbed Eve's hand and dragged her after her, intent upon reaching the goal point before the boys.

The result of this confusion was that all four fell onto the circle at roughly the same time. With a flash of light, they all vanished.

~P's E~

A few miles away, the Garuda was still cruising through the sky when a light started blinking on one of the panels Astro had installed. "What's that?" Sensho's asked, and Totomaru inspected it. "Proximity alert," he read. "Proximity . . I think it means there's something close to us,"

Sensho's took a brief look around. "I don't see anything," he pointed out, before dashing to the edge of the deck and peering over the railing. "And there's nothing below us,"

"Well, then -" The fire wizard had a sudden thought. "It must be above us!" he exclaimed, wishing that the massive red canopy that the airship hung from was transparent. There could be anything up there and they'd be clueless. Pulling on a few ropes of fire to adjust some of the actual ropes at the prow of the airship, he heaved on the tiller and swung the ship to the right. The Garuda jetted in a circle, and for a second it seemed that all was well.

Then the balloon above them crumpled and seemed to be shoved sideways, and, realising that whatever was above them was trying to come down on the airship and force it to the ground, Totomaru flicked several of his purple strands at once and let out all of the slack in the ropes on the left-hand side of the airship, while reining in the ropes in the right. The result was that the wooden body of the airship wildly swung to starboard, losing its steady elevation and turning the deck into a sideways slant. Gripping the tiller like death, the Phoenix struggled not to lose his balance, while Sensho desperately clung to the railing as it came closer and closer to being the floor.

But the ploy had worked, and the sideways motion threw the Garuda just far enough to get out from the underside of their attacker, and the weight in the canopy lessened. Totomaru would have whooped for joy if he hadn't been too busy restoring the ropes to their proper configuration.

"Tea Brew!" Sensho shouted in the background, and his guildmate spared him a glance to see that the man had taken out a teapot and was casting a spell on it. Unbelievable. The situation they were in and he was making tea.

However, when he realised what exactly was now flying alongside the recovering airship, he decided he had bigger problems.

It was an island.

An entire island, easily fifty times the size of the Garuda, was hovering - somehow - just metres away from them. Most of the island was taken up by a massive, octagonal castle, with eight towers that were connected by walls and a central keep. The island, whose momentum and gravity and sheer, unadulterated weight was preventing it from stopping so easily, continued to sink towards the ground, allowing Totomaru to catch a glimpse of the roof. Which bore the same ouroboros symbol that he knew was the guild mark of Kairos End.

~P's E~

In the control room of Kairos End's floating island headquarters, Fred devilishly grinned, watching his prey on the screens. "I'm sure Master won't mind me borrowing the guild hall," he muttered to himself. "It's for a good cause after all,"

~P's E~

Sensho screamed, and the sound snapped Totomaru out of the brief moment of shock. Knowing dark wizards, that thing was absolutely brimming with weaponry.

He pulled on a couple of ropes and forced the airship to gain altitude, keeping one eye on the floating island as it recovered beneath them. In his peripheral vision, he spotted Sensho gulping down tea, and groaned.

Noticing his reaction, Sensho, who suddenly was beaming brightly, pressed a cup into his hand as he released a rope. "Here, drink this!" the medic commanded.

Totomaru's first reaction was to be skeptical, but recalled some of the positive effects he'd heard Sensho's tea could have and accepted the drink, quickly downing it and returning his focus to the airship as a curious feeling of lightness began to grow in his chest.

Unable to stop a grin from breaking out over his face at the sensation, he turned to Sensho and questioned, "What was in that tea? Magic replenishing? Strength potion?"

"Positivi-Tea!" Sensho replied, grinning madly at his guildmate. "It always helps me feel better when things look hopeless!"

Totomaru blinked, and a vein pulsed in his neck. He clapped Sensho on the back, and, still madly grinning, shouted, "My friend, you are absolutely the worst wizard I've ever had the misfortune of fighting alongside!" With that off his chest, he returned his attention to the tiller and saw that the proximity light was flashing again.

One of the towers around the outer wall of Kairos End's fortress had risen into view in front of the prow, and a second and third were appearing to the left while the central octagonal fortress started to appear on their right . . With a flash of insight, Totomaru realised what their adversaries' plan was. "They're trying to box us in! That's brilliant! Don't you think, Sensho?" he asked, before blinking. Once again, Sensho was casting his Tea Brew spell, this time with a look of furious determination.

Gritting his teeth in a pained smile, Totomaru continued to try to ascend, but the floating castle rose with them, continuing to prevent the Garuda's escape. "We're trapped," he growled, feeling the Positivi-Tea start to wear off. Maybe he could launch Rainbow Fire to smash their way out? . . No, the recoil would destroy the Garuda also.

"I've got a plan!" the healer declared, the teapot in his hand now glowing with magic energy.

"Really? Well, it can't be any worse than our current situation," Totomaru shot back, still wrestling with the tiller.

"When I say, fly straight forwards!" Sensho declared, dashing from his spot and running down the stairs that would lead him down to the main deck.

"What? But . . the wall!" his guildmate frowned.

"I can deal with that!" the support wizard hollered, puffing as he reached the prow. "On tea!" he shouted, and, with all his might, threw his teapot overboard, sending it flying, end over end, towards the ground of the island below.

Totomaru blinked. Did he just say . .

"One!" Sensho counted. "Two!"

Gritting his teeth and, deciding, against his better judgement, to trust the man, Totomaru nodded and tensed.

"Tea!" Sensho madly grinned, and Totomaru pulled on several ropes and sent the Garuda charging forwards, directly towards the wall. He clenched his jaw, staring at the solid greyness that was seconds from smashing into them -

And, suddenly, massive vines, sprouting from the base of the wall, spiderwebbed across the obstruction, splintering and spreading in every direction and forcibly tearing apart the wall, brick by brick. With a heave, the wall gave out, leaving a massive hole in the trap that the Garuda was charging towards.

However, it wasn't quite large enough, and there was a _crunch_ that sent shivers through the ship as her hull scraped a piece of rubble. Frantically coaxing more height out of the ship, Totomaru pulled the Garuda away, but the manoeuvre drew them into the path of a jagged chunk of rock that sheared through several of the ropes connecting the gasbag to the hull of the ship. As the deck pitched and threatened to fall, Totomaru darted around and rapidly respun his webs of purple fire to hold the damaged airship together, but the damage had been done. The Garuda was hanging on by a thread.

Meanwhile, Sensho returned to the stern of the ship, trusting Totomaru to hold it together, and watched what he had wrought on the floating island headquarters of Kairos End.

Wild, out-of-control tea plants were spreading across the entire island, leeching energy out of the island's soil and tearing the castle apart in search for more nutrients. The towers were collapsing in every direction as debris littered the ground amongst the grotesquely swollen stems of the plants, and as their creator watched, roots from his plants that were frantically growing in every direction began to sprout from the base of the island, searching for more energy to draw upon, and seemingly becoming angry when it realised there was none. Before long, the majority of the castle had been torn to pieces by the flailing roots.

And then the island itself, with the growing plants forcing the dirt apart and leeching everything good out of it, shuddered, before a massive fissure ran across it and it broke into pieces with a dull crack, sending dirt and debris in every direction.

His attention caught by the noise, Totomaru turned and looked back at the place where their enemy had been. He gasped. "What?! What did you . . what was that?" he demanded, completely shocked.

Sensho smiled. "Maximum potency Fertili-Tea. Who says Tea Magic is useless?"

Totomaru soundlessly mouthed the word 'Fertili-Tea'. "I hereby take back every bad thing I have ever said about you and your Tea Magic,"

Sensho smiled, satisfied with this. "Thank you,"

Suddenly, the ship shook, and pitched forwards. Totomaru was flung against the tiller by the momentum, and Sensho lost his footing. "What happened?" the fire wizard questioned.

There was a ripping noise from above them, and a small, but sharp chunk of debris from the castle fell out of a freshly made hole in the gasbag. It had obviously hit the ship during the explosion and penetrated the bag, coming to rest for a short period within the felt pocket, before falling out after stretching it to its capacity.

"I've got a sinking feeling about this," Sensho weakly offered, and Totomaru groaned as the feeling of vertigo in his stomach confirmed the fact that they were, indeed, sinking. "You don't say," he groaned. Briefly, the fire wizard considered trying to get up to the gasbag and use his orange fire to glue the holes shut, but knew it would be a futile endeavour that would most likely end in him falling out of the ship to his death.

"Hold on tight. I'm gonna try to land her," the fire wizard growled, flexing the controls and pulling on several flaming ropes, sending the Garuda into a somewhat controlled forwards glide.

Sensho looked ill at the thought, but Totomaru wasn't paying him any attention. The instruments Astro had installed told him that the ground was quickly approaching, but it would still be a while before impact. He just had to hold on tightly to the controls and hope that the Garuda would hold together for long enough.

Underneath their feet, the crack in the hull that had been opened during the impact was growing wider.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **Cliffhanger, baby! I am so evil~.**

 **And the reveal of Fred's shapeshifting abilities, which might result in previous events being seen in a new light. Also, is he dead? Did he survive the crash? Will Totomaru and Sensho land safely, and if so, will they manage to call for help? Only time will tell. Peace!**


	63. Masquerading

Chapter 63: Masquerading

 **Okay, I know some people don't read Author's Notes, but seriously! I have put a poll on my profile about this story, and I want people to vote! So please do that!**

 **A/N**

 ** _Previously, on The Guild Next Door . . ._**

 _Alice cheerfully hummed to herself as she strode through the guild hall, ignoring the lecherous looks of the bar patrons, and headed up the stairs, making for the doors leading into -_

Yellow spikes. Twin blue triangles. A wicked smile.

 _Alice froze with a quiet gasp, freezing in place with one foot raised. No. Not again. She couldn't -_

 _She overbalanced, and shrieked as she fell back down the stairs, causing the food to spill all over her dress, and collapsed with a moan at the base of the stairs._

 _~P's E~_

"Well," Hydranoid commented, using his high-pitched voice. "That was easy," he added in his usual bass tones.

He was perched on Alice's shoulder as the two stood next to one of the warp gates, prepared to jump into it at any given moment. "You think it'll work? All the robots stopped working, so . . what if this did too?" Alice worried, but Hydranoid groaned. "You're overthinking it," "Either it works, or it doesn't," "And if it doesn't, we just need to find another way out," his three heads chimed in.

"Okay. But the guild is under attack - what if we get ambushed?" the girl questioned, concerned.

"That's what I'm here for, Alice," her partner reassured her.

"Okay," the Brawler nodded, taking a deep breath and stepping forwards - and, just a second before she was fully on the teleportation plate, a white shape swooped down from the ceiling and landed in front of her. Alice's eyes widened in surprise, but the teleport pad had already triggered and before she could react, everything went white.

~P's E~

In the ruins of the old Phoenix's Eye guild hall, there was a flash of light and Tyria and Lync appeared.

"Hey. Keep it down, he warned before his guildmates could say anything," Wesley hissed at them.

Looking around, the foreign wizards registered that Wesley, Lorus, Blanca and Eve were crouched in the ruins around them. "Did something happen?" Lync asked, crawling to join them without raising any part of his body above the shelter of the ruined wall they had their backs to.

"There's a creepy guy who's taken Master hostage wandering around the ruins," Eve quietly explained. "He's a few blocks away right now, but that might not last,"

"There's also another guy who's captured Artorias, Sarph and Garrotte and is keeping them knocked out in one of the ruins," Blanca explained, looking disgruntled. "I should be doing that, I'm the best guard!"

"Uh, no," Lync frowned, interrupting. "Then you'd be working for the enemy, and that would be bad," he pointed out.

Blanca blinked, and her lip quivered. "You're right, that was stupid. I'm so pathetic!" she moaned, before Tyria frantically covered her mouth before her sobs could give away their position. "No, no, you're great, don't worry," She knew exactly how to push Blanca's buttons, and the Plastic wizard nodded, accepting this. "Yeah, of course I am!"

"The hero and his comrades have formulated the plan to wait until all of our friends have arrived here and joined us, at which point we shall launch a conjoined assault and free our allies," Lorus explained. "The sole remaining quandary is, whom ought the hero and his company to target first? Which of our foes is the more powerful; the one holding Master, or the one holding the S-Classes?"

"Good question," Tyria agreed. "It's gotta take powerful magic to keep Master down. But keeping three strong wizards bound at once? That's also pretty tough,"

"Well, we need to wait for the others in any case. Maybe they'll have input?" Tyria suggested.

"As long as it's not better than mine, that'll be fine," Blanca ascertained.

There was a pause as the group lapsed into silence once more, during which an uncomfortable thought occurred to Lync. "Wait. Are we certain that all of the escape pads come out at the same place?"

The silence suddenly turned uncomfortable as the six Phoenixes considered this.

~P's E~

On the outskirts of the town, where the ruins fed into open plain, there was a flash or light and Alice dropped to the ground, Hydranoid losing his grip and collapsing back into a ball as he fell.

Aberforth landed a few feet away in a crouch, before rising to his feet and glowering at the orange-haired girl as she hastily picked herself up and scooped up Hydranoid. "Well?"

Alice blinked, looking at the man who was covered entirely by a white robe. She paused, confused by the word, and, after thinking for a second, questioned, "Well, what?"

"Do you have any mind games up your sleeve? Planning to put me off? Distract me so you can get a cheap hit in? Because it won't work," the Assassin retorted. "My eyes are wise to all your lies, 'cause you're not that discreet," he added in a sing-song voice.

Alice frowned, having the strangest feeling like her enemy had just made some kind of reference to something. "What are you talking about?"

"Pop culture, mostly," he shrugged. "I am Aberforth, the Assassin. And I'm used to people having no idea what I'm saying,"

"Good to know," Feeling that, since her opponent was being polite, it would be rude of her not to show him the same courtesy. "Alice Gehabich, Battle Brawler," she replied. "And this is my partner, Hydranoid,"

Aberforth blinked, then frowned. "Oh, you're one of those Bakugan-toting wizards. That's a rare treat," he observed with a smile.

"You're one of the people attacking the guild, aren't you?" Alice frowned, and Hydranoid opened in her hand. "We won't stand for that," he chimed in.

"Guilty as charged," Aberforth shrugged.

"Why?" Alice asked.

The Kairos blinked. Usually, by now, he'd be fighting. But this young woman seemed unusually chatty. "Why?" he parroted.

"Why are you attacking us? What do you stand to gain?" Alice questioned. "I'm sure that, if we talked about it in a civilised way, we could come to a compromise that benefits everyone," she primly explained.

Aberforth frowned. "I dunno. I'm pretty sure Master has some big goal in mind or something - oh, hey," He held out his arms, and a sniper rifle appeared in his hands. Alice flinched and tensed, prepared to defend herself, but instead, Aberforth held the gun in both hands and asked it; "Hey, Piercer? Do you know what Master's objective is? I don't remember,"

There was a moment of silence, which Alice spent wondering if the gun was actually going to respond.

"He didn't tell us?" Aberforth blinked with the air of having just heard someone speak, and sighed. "Well, that's a shame, but I guess it makes sense. I'm sure all will be revealed when the time is right," he accepted.

Alice quietly decided that the man before her was a few cards short of a deck.

"But, as for me?" The smile that Aberforth had worn until now vanished, and an ugly sneer now dominated his blond beard. "I'm just doing this because, if there's one thing I hate above all else, it's phoenixes," he growled, twisting his grip and raising the gun, pointing it at Alice.

Luckily, the Brawler was prepared, and knew that trying to explain to her attacker that she was a pacifist would just get her killed. "Bakugan, brawl!" she commanded, tossing Hydranoid at the ground. If she didn't want to fight, then she'd just get her partner to do all the fighting for her.

Aberforth grunted and re-aimed, before firing. The bullet streaked from his gun and caught the Bakugan in mid-air, before it could stand, knocking it backwards. Hydranoid cried out in pain, and Alice gasped, leaping forwards and catching him. "Hydranoid! How do you feel?" she demanded, shocked. Never before had she seen someone counter a Bakugan before it could stand. It was unheard of.

Her Bakugan groaned, emerging partway, before rolling onto his side and collapsing back into a ball. "N . . not . . uwaaagh," he groaned.

"What did you do?" Alice demanded, glaring at Aberforth in unrestrained fury.

"I shot him. What did it look like?" Aberforth unrepentantly answered.

"You . ." Alice couldn't even articulate how furious and disgusted she was at this.

 _Spikes of yellow hair. A white coat that hung to his feet, with sleeves rolled up to his elbows._

Her yellow dress seemed to ripple as a sudden wind blew through the area.

 _Twin triangular lenses that hid his eyes and cheeks, tinted ocean blue. Purple trousers tucked into black leather boots._

Aberforth looked around, searching for the source of the sudden power he sensed. "What . . what is this?" he questioned, suddenly on his guard.

 _A vest under his coat, as black as his heart. Lips twisted in a sneer that betrayed his displeasure._

"Enough," the Assassin snapped. "Wouldn't you agree, Piercer?" he questioned his weapon, before raising it to point at Ali _ce_ 's chest. He pulled the trigger.

 _There was a fla_ sh of black light.

The sudden blinding brilliance forced Aberforth to look away. He didn't see his bullet crumble to dust in mid-air.

When he looked back, Alice was gone. In her place was a boy of the same height and build, but different in every way; from the white coat with its many straps that covered much of his body, to the angry expression that his fang-shaped blue glasses failed to obscure.

"Who the hell are you?" Aberforth blinked.

The boy seemed amused by the question, as his expression changed to a smile with no humour behind it. "My name is Masquerade," he stated with a tone of voice that seemed to imply that he expected Aberforth to recognise the name. "I suppose you could call me Alice's guardian angel,"

"Masquer - where have I heard that before?" the Kairos frowned, racking his brains.

"Maybe this will give you a hint," Masquerade stated, pulling an object that looked like a card with the skull of an animal, with possessed, glowing eyes printed on it, and showing it to the man.

Aberforth certainly recognised it. "That's a Doom Card," he gasped. "A dark magic artefact that can banish enemies to a parallel dimension, and corrupt the mind of its wielder. That's really powerful dark magic. What's a guild wizard doing with one of those?" he questioned.

The blond boy opened his mouth to respond, but was forestalled when the End of Saturday commented, as though responding to a statement, "You think so, Piercer?"

". . . Anyway. I have this because my grandfather _invented_ Doom Cards. You might have heard of him. His name's Hal-G," Masquerade stated, his smile not slipping for an instant.

"Hal-G? Of course I've heard of him! He was one of the greatest dark wizards of the age, until he died when his attempt to conquer Fiore with an army of monsters from another dimension went south," Aberforth rattled off from memory, before blinking. "And one of the main reasons he was defeated was because his right-hand man betrayed him . . that was you," he realised, suddenly looking uncomfortable with the situation.

"Got it in one," Masquerade nodded. "Congratulations. You win first prize," His smile twisted back into a contemptuous sneer.

". . . and what's that?" Aberforth questioned, his cockiness draining out of him as he realised exactly what he was up against.

"A merciful death for threatening my sister and hurting our partner," All trace of amusement was gone from his countenance now, and, behind his glasses, his eyes were hard. With a complicated series of flourishes, he manifested several bright purple magic circles around him in the span of a couple of seconds, and commanded, "Amaterasu Formula: 15!"

Aberforth frantically leapt out of the way as a series of rapid-fire explosions of purple energy narrowly missed him. He frantically let Piercer vanish into his Requip space, and commanded, "Requip!" With a flash, his sniper rifle vanished, replaced by a wicked scimitar made of a material that was dark purple, almost black, with tiny knobs decorating an intricate, bow-shaped crossguard.

Aberforth lunged forwards, but Masquerade had already seen him move and bared his chest in response, spreading his arms wide with Amaterasu Formula circles already popping up around them. Misinterpreting his enemy's actions, Aberforth gleefully brought his sword down on the boy's chest - only for it to meet unexpected resistance underneath his white coat. Masquerade grinned. "Amaterasu Formula: 28!"

As one, the twenty-eight magic circles he'd manifested detonated with flares of purple energy, blowing Aberforth backwards.

"What just happened? Slasher! You let me down!" the assassin complained.

Masquerade just grinned and thought of the metal plate he wore on his chest underneath his coat. "Formula 3!" he barked, waving his arms and manifesting the three magic circles needed for the spell in less than a second, blasting the Assassin again.

Aberforth tried to pick himself up, but Masquerade wouldn't have it. "Formula 3! Formula 3!" Again and again he was struck, seemingly helpless to resist the blasts.

"Had enough?" the Darkus Brawler questioned, striding forwards and yanking on the grown man's coat, lifting him with strength beyond his years to glare into his face.

He blinked.

Instead of the battered beard he had expected to see, he was presented with a dummy that looked to be made of rags and stuffed with wool. "The hell?"

And then there was a staggering impact to his back that forced him to drop the dummy and go stumbling forwards. He whirled, to see the real End of Saturday behind him, withdrawing his leg after a mighty kick. "I am a master of the cloak and dagger arts," he declared.

"Apparently so. I take it that was some form of teleportation magic?" Masquerade questioned. "Not bad,"

"Thank you," Aberforth graciously inclined his head. "You can launch as many attacks as you want, but it won't matter if you can't hit me,"

"You think?" Masquerade questioned, spreading his arms and manifesting more dark Amaterasu Seals around each. "Formula 4!" he cast, launching the seals around his left arm at his enemy, who promptly flickered and vanished before the attack hit.

Expecting an attack to come from his left or behind him, Masquerade spun in an anticlockwise direction and was rewarded with Aberforth lunging at him from behind with a crystal dagger in his hand. "Formula 4!" he cast from his right hand, throwing it out in a perfectly aimed punch that strengthened the force of the magical laser, which nailed the Kairos in the face and interrupted his momentum, sending him crashing to the ground.

"You're predictable," Masquerade scoffed. "You have no strategy to speak of, and you rely far too much on your teleportation skills,"

"Is that right?" Aberforth vanished again, reappearing several metres away. "Then I suppose it's time to change the game," With a flick of his wrist, he sent the crystal dagger in his hand spinning, end over end, at the boy, who whirled in the balls of his feet and narrowly avoided the projectile. As it passed, he noticed that it was made of a crystalline material, with one half green and the other half red, held together by a yellow core.

And then the dagger vanished in a flash of light, and, frowning, Masquerade looked back at his enemy - to see that he was holding an identical dagger in his hand, which he promptly threw. Again, he dodged it, but this time, it came closer to cutting his arm.

With a flash of light, a third identical dagger appeared in Aberforth's hand - no. Not a series of identical daggers. The _same_ dagger. But how - of course. "I get it now. Every time you throw your dagger, you use Requip magic to send it back into your pocket dimension after it misses, and then call it back out into your hand to use it again. Very creative," he observed.

"I can't take all the credit. It was Licker's own idea," Aberforth unabashedly shrugged, gesturing to the dagger in question, before throwing it again.

Masquerade was so surprised by the ridiculous nature of this name - which was saying something, considering everything he'd heard from this nut job so far - that he almost failed to dodge. Luckily, he twisted and raised his arms in time for it to pass harmlessly by. "Licker? Why do you call it that?"

"It's a name I gave him because of the very potent poisons that coat his blade," Aberforth explained, Requipping Licker once more. "The green side is coated in King Jellyfish venom. Instant paralysis for a period of several hours. While the red side bears distilled essence of nightshade, one of the most lethal poisons in the known world. One cut and you'll die a slow, painful death. And if you get stabbed with both sides at once?" He drew a finger across his white-veiled neck for emphasis. "You're done for,"

Masquerade gulped. Now he was very happy he'd dodged that dagger.

"Isn't that right, Licky baby? You're such a cute little murderer, oh yes you are, oh yes you are~" Aberforth suddenly started talking to the dagger as though it were a small, beloved child, and Masquerade sweatdropped. ". . I don't know what to say about that," he admitted, looking disturbed.

"Who's my good little murderer?" Aberforth giggled, pressing a finger to the flat of the dagger.

The reformed wizard decided it was in his best interest to take advantage of the distraction, generating and slinging Amaterasu Seals in every direction, constantly shooting more and more out of each of his fingers. "Amaterasu Formula: 40!" he invoked, sending a surge of power through the circles that now surrounded them both, seemingly blasting Aberforth to kingdom come.

Masquerade blinked as, when the dust cleared, all that was left was a pile of scraps of cloth. "Well . . that was easier than I expected," he observed, before pausing. "Wait a second," he frowned, eyebrows furrowing behind his mask, and, acting on a sudden instinct, he span around.

His arm lashed out and caught the wrist of the assassin that had popped up behind him, stopping the dagger clenched in his hand inches from his midriff. "Nice try. But you already used that dummy, and I never fall for the same trick twice," He twisted his hand and tightened his grip, and, with a squeak, Aberforth flinched and dropped Licker.

With a dark smile, Masquerade stepped forwards, covering the fallen weapon with his thick, black boot. Then, in a fluid motion that most professional wrestlers would be proud of, he twisted his grip and flipped Aberforth over his shoulder, launching him into the air before swinging him down and sending him crashing to the ground at his feet. With a twirl that made his coat billow, the dark wizard sneered down at the Kairos. "Alright. There's only one thing left to do, now," he declared, reaching into his pocket and pulling out the Doom Card. Aberforth' eyes widened at the sight of it.

"You know what this is. You know what it will do to you, and you know that no one ever escapes the Doom Dimension. Any last words?" Masquerade gloated.

". . . Screw this. We never agreed to give our lives for this job. Give Master Eternity my best, and tell him I won't be seeing him!" Aberforth squeaked, and vanished in a flash of light.

Masquerade frowned at this development, and kept his guard up, not for a second believing that the Assassin had been telling the truth and that this wasn't a ploy to get him to let his guard down. Shifting his foot, he noticed that the dagger had been Requipped. But, as the moments ticked by with no sign of the man, he slowly relaxed. Apparently Aberforth's self-preservation instincts overruled his loyalty to his guild.

There was a sudden noise behind him and he whirled, fully expecting that he had been right the first time and Aberforth had returned, however, instead, there was a girl with long, silver hair and dark blue eyes, wearing a black choker and skirt with a pale gold crop top, and a rapier hanging at her wrist.

Fleur flinched in surprise, seeing the unfamiliar boy, and, with a flourish, unsheathed her rapier, holding it out and at the ready. Masquerade was prepared to engage, but a mental warning from Alice told him that this girl was part of the guild. "Whoa, hey. I'm on your side. My name's Masquerade, I'm Alice's brother,"

The Petal Mage paused, hearing this, and cocked her head inquisitively, before sheathing her rapier and making a series of gestures with her hands. Masquerade tried to follow, but without much success. "I don't speak sign language," he pointed out.

Fleur sighed, before fumbling in her pockets and pulling out a piece of paper and a pen, before quickly scribbling something and handing it to Masquerade. "You want me to prove I am who I say I am," he read, and nodded, handing it back. "Smart. You're right to be suspicious, but I've heard enough about your guild from her that I think I can answer any questions. Shoot,"

Fleur thought for a second, trying to think of something Alice would have told this 'brother' about. At once, it hit her. Pierce's magic, that Alice had helped with. She would surely have told this Masquerade about it. She promptly scribbled the question and passed it over.

"What sort of magic did Alice help Pierce train in? She modified his flute so that he could do Take Overs with the beasts in it without needing to consume their souls," he reiterated from memory, shuddering slightly. The amount of time Alice had spent sorting that out . . he wasn't likely to forget that.

Mollified, but still suspicious, Fleur snatched the notebook back and scribbled one more question, before handing it back. "I could have found that out from spying on you, true. But only someone genuinely close to Alice would know her grandfather's full name and title. _Our_ ," Masquerade stressed the word, "grandfather is Dr. Michael Gehabich, who currently lives in Electria and is studying alternative energy sources. And, since I know that won't be conclusive," With a quick flourish, he manifested a couple of Amaterasu Seals, before letting them fizzle out. "I use the same kind of magic as her, too,"

Fleur pursed her lips, not completely convinced,

Masquerade shot her what he hoped was a friendly smile. The expression was unfamiliar on his face, and his menacing, fang-shaped blue glasses probably lessened the effect, but he thought it would help.

She shrugged and returned the smile, giving him a thumbs up before writing something else.

"Well, you've convinced me," Masquerade read. "I'm glad for the extra help, because the guild's in trouble. What sort of trouble?" he asked.

Fleur sighed and cracked her knuckles. This was going to take a lot of writing to explain.

~P's E~

On the far side of Diamauros, there was another flash of light. Pierce and Grace stumbled out of the recently-activated teleporter, looking around. "Where are we?" Grace wondered.

"Not sure. Better question is, where's everyone else?" Pierce asked, looking around.

"Hold on," Grace manifested a portal in front of her, and pushed her head and shoulders into it. Looking around, and then straight up, Pierce spotted his sister's head above them, looking around - before screaming and retreating. Grace promptly fell backwards out of the rift, breathing heavily and trying to stave off what Pierce recognised would be a panic attack. "Hey. It's okay," he consoled her, wrapping his arms around and hugging Grace. The Dragon Slayer leant into the contact, slowly calming down.

"What's wrong?" Pierce asked, running his fingers through her grass green hair.

"S-scary Pierce," Grace gulped, clinging to him.

The Phoenix blinked. "You - you mean that other me? From Edolas? He's _here_?"

Weakly, she nodded.

Pierce frowned. "So he's what's attacking us. But why would he attack another version of his guild?" he wondered, before it hit him.

Edo-Pierce - Pierce Kynigós, he thought Garrotte had said - had lost his entire guild. So maybe . . maybe he was trying to replace his friends. Which would mean Kynigós replacing _him_.

Pierce's eyes widened as he came to a conclusion. "He's not attacking the guild. He's attacking _me_ ,"

A/N

 **A/N**

 **Oh, Pierce. I can just tell this is going to end badly. XD**

 **Seriously, though. It has to be noted that Pierce hasn't yet seen anyone from Kairos End. He doesn't even know they're what's attacking Phoenix's Eye yet - he and Grace are completely out of the loop. And now Scary Pierce (XD) is here, and Grace considers him an enemy, and Pierce is inclined to believe her since she's the only one who's met him, so this is a pretty logical conclusion for him to come to.**

 **And definitely not contrived so that I can have my Pierce vs. Pierce fight or anything.**

 **Also, sorry for the shorter chapter this time around, but for every chapter, I have a sort of 'checklist' of things that I want to be done in the chapter. And sometimes it takes less words for a chapter to complete that checklist than it does other chapters. For example, this chapter, I needed; Tyria and Lync to regroup with Lorus, Wesley, Blanca and Eve, Masquerade to defeat Aberforth and team up with Fleur, and Pierce to be alerted to the fact that Scary Pierce is around. That all just took less time than I thought it would.**

 **Also, I can honestly say that 'Scary Pierce' is one of the best things in this story to date. Not even the character. Just the title. XD Peace!**


	64. Legacy of the Hunter

Chapter 64: Legacy of the Hunter

 ** _Previously, on The Guild Next Door . . ._**

 _"I've got a sinking feeling about this," Sensho weakly offered._

 _"Hold on tight. I'm gonna try to land her," Totomaru growled._

 _Underneath their feet, the crack in the hull of the Garuda that had been opened during the impact was growing wider._

 _~P's E~_

 _"That other me? He's here?" Pierce incredulously questioned._

 _Weakly, Grace nodded._

 _Pierce frowned. "So he's what's attacking us. But why would he attack another version of his guild?" he wondered, before it hit him. Pierce Kynigós had lost his entire guild. So maybe he was trying to replace his friends. Which would mean Kynigós replacing_ him _. "He's not attacking the guild. He's attacking_ me _,"_

 _~P's E~_

Beneath Totomaru and Sensho's feet, the deck of the Garuda shivered, as the crack under their feet continued to spread along the length of the hull. The ground that they were descending towards was still far beneath their feet. Too far.

"I don't suppose you have some sort of tea that could give us wings, do you?" Totomaru asked.

Sensho shrugged. "Sorry, no,"

"Crap," Totomaru frowned, pulling on one of the ropes of purple fire that were strung around the airship, and it tilted a few degrees forwards, fractionally increasing the rate of their descent. "Every second counts,"

And that was the final straw. With a tortured grinding noise, the hole in the base of the hull leapt towards the prow, racing up the port side and splitting the left part of the ship away. The deck underfoot bucked and pitched, as the sudden shaking, combined with his mounting exhaustion, caused Totomaru to lose his focus on maintaining the net of purple fire that held the ship together.

What followed was a catastrophic chain reaction as the gasbag of the Garuda, attached to the main section of the ship by the edges of the deck, pulled the fracturing timbers further apart. In the belly of the airship, the supplies and beds stored below decks spilled out into the abyss beneath through the growing chasm.

"The ship's breaking apart!" Totomaru gasped, looking around. There had to be something he could do. Anything - the gasbag! If he wrapped his purple fire around the canopy, and Sensho kept close to him, it might be able to act as a parachute!

"Sensho! Hold on tight to me!" he shouted at the Tea Wizard, who was - predictably - brewing a tea. Nodding, the Phoenix dashed towards him, still clutching his cup and what Totomaru could only assume was his backup teapot.

Cracking his knuckles and trying to block out the sensation of fatigue that was rapidly overcoming him, Totomaru span his hands and manifested long ropes of purple fire, applying a liberal coating of orange fire to the ends of each and throwing them into the air where they caught the gasbag. The older planks underneath him quaked and cracked as the ship continued to pull itself apart under its own weight, and with a twang one of the supporting ropes snapped, sending the prow and the right half of the ship tipping downwards, away from the left half. The sudden wrenching sensation placed even more strain on the mostly-intact stern of the airship, and, beneath his feet, Totomaru could spot cracks appearing.

With a sudden flash of inspiration, he transferred the ropes to his left hand, before producing his sword with his right and launching a horizontal slash that severed the ship's tiller from the deck, before wrapping his purple ropes of fire around the extended handles. He then sheathed his weapon once more and, taking a deep breath to better cope with the effort, cast a second flare of adhesive orange/purple ropes up to the gasbag, letting them stick before wrapping them also around the tiller.

Suddenly, there was a gut-wrenching crack, and the floor beneath their feet split in half, the Garuda finally ripped asunder by its own weight. Gritting his teeth, Totomaru threw himself onto the pseudo-basket the tiller formed as the floor dropped out from under them. "Grab on!" he encouraged Sensho, who nodded and leapt from the floor as it fell away, grabbing onto the tiller, and his guildmate pulled him onto the tiny island of relative safety.

To their right, there was a series of harmonious notes as ropes snapped, one after the other, until, finally, there was nothing left to hold the right half of the destroyed airship in the sky. The two wizards watched as the emancipated prow knifed through the air, descending to the ground, where both knew that it would shatter into thousands of pieces.

Suddenly, the gasbag, now unevenly weighted, tilted sideways, sending the tiller they were clinging to swinging to the left, and, now that the weight it bore had been halved, beginning to rise. The ascension was temporary, though, as the gasbag was still venting hot air through the hole in the top, and the remains of the airship began to sink once more.

Sensho breathed heavily. "Is it over?" he asked Totomaru, clutching his tea set with white knuckles.

"Hopefully. Just don't make any sudden movements," the Fire wizard cautioned his friend, and Sensho nodded, relaxing his posture and sitting back on the limited space provided by the tiller.

There was a sickening ripping noise from above them, and Totomaru glanced upwards to see that the section of gasbag that one of the flaming ropes holding them up was attached to was tearing away. Hastily, he manifested a new rope and threw it upwards, just as the preexisting one fell off, collapsing downwards and dangling beneath them. "Shit," he muttered as the new hole in the gasbag caused the rate of their descent to noticeably increase.

Another twanging noise caught his attention, and he looked at the remaining half of the Garuda to see that the ropes there were snapping. "Oh, no no no no," the fire wizard breathed in horror. If the remaining section of the ship fell to earth, the entire gasbag would have nothing holding it down but him and Sensho. With such little weight, it would rise into the uppermost reaches of the stratosphere, where there wasn't enough oxygen to breathe, and so little heat that they would freeze. Sure, it was still losing hot air, but the two of them would either freeze to death or asphyxiate long before the gasbag returned to earth.

He threw another rope, linking the remnants of the airship to their makeshift support, but by this point, Totomaru had been slinging and maintaining cords of purple fire for several hours on end, and he was reaching his limit. The strand fizzled, there but weak, as another couple of ropes snapped. "No, no _no_!" the Phoenix shouted, redoubling his efforts to hold the carcass of the Garuda to them - and, in the process, losing focus on the other ropes that held him and Sensho to the gasbag.

In an instant, they all vanished, dissipating into ethernano - and the tiller collapsed, instantly starting to fall out of the sky. Totomaru gasped as it fell away under their feet, and Sensho hastily grabbed at his fur-lined red coat.

Totomaru screamed as a sickening sensation of weightlessness swelled in his stomach and the ground, so far below, inched ever closer.

"No! I won't die like this!" the Phoenix shouted, looking down and quailing, before staring back up at the gasbag above. In a frenzied effort, he put all of his strength into throwing another orange/purple sticky rope up at the still-floating bag, even as the distance between them grew ever greater.

The rope fell short, reaching the apex of its swing several metres below the flailing bag. They were too far away.

A distance that only increased as the few remaining ropes holding the remaining section of the Garuda in place snapped, sending the port side of the ship plunging back down to earth.

"No! I won't die like this!" Totomaru shouted, more to himself than anything, looking around and making rough guesses as to distances and velocity. "Okay," he murmured as the faint vestiges of a plan came to him. "If I use Rainbow Fire directly beneath us at just the right moment, the recoil might just slow us down enough that we can survive the fall. What do you think?" he asked Sensho, still clutching at his coat.

"ARE YOU SERIOUSLY BREWING TEA RIGHT NOW?!"

"Not . . just . ." Sensho wheezed through the wind rushing past them as the ground came any closer. "Any . . tea!"

"What are you -" Remembering the Fertili-Tea incident, Totomaru hollered, "Is that a tea to give us wings? Or something?!"

"Good . ." Sensho huffed as the teapot flashed. "You finally get it," Dispensing with cups, he pulled the spout of the teapot to his lips and took a long draught, before holding it up to Totomaru.

The ground was coming closer, enough that he could now pick apart the individual trees on the ground. Frantically, the Fire wizard bent in mid-air and grabbed the teapot from his guildmate, before drinking out of it.

And, suddenly, his body started to feel light. "What was that?" he questioned, looking at Sensho, who seemed to be doing some kind of breaststroke in mid-air, making for a large tree.

"Anti-Gravi-Tea! Makes you light as a feather!" Sensho exclaimed as they gently glided down towards a canopy of trees.

Totomaru blinked, and shrugged. "Works for me!" he declared, and carefully fell into the trees. They landed with ease, the branches not even buckling under their lessened weight.

The Fire wizard breathed heavily, looking around. "I can't believe we survived that,"

"We still have to get help," Sensho pointed out.

"I know that!"

~P's E~

A brief tune echoed through the ruins, and Pierce Kynigós' ears pricked up. With nothing better to do, he decided to investigate the music.

~P's E~

Pierce had summoned Knox, and the werewolf looked around, on his guard. "So you have an evil twin running around here somewhere?" he growled.

"We think so, yeah," Pierce confirmed.

"Makes about as much sense as anything else around here does," Knox confirmed. "But shouldn't you call the new kid? The qilin? That power of his could give you a real edge," he suggested, making an effort to overcome his usual irritability due to the urgency of the situation.

"Not a bad idea," Pierce admitted, a little upset that he hadn't thought of that. He was still getting used to having Cor on his team - he'd never thought that he'd tame a qilin. Pressing his flute to his lips, he played Knox's recall tune, before trying to remember the melody he'd set as Cor's. After a second, though, he got it, and the ruby-encrusted qilin materialised near him and Grace.

As soon as he looked around, Cor's smouldering, coal-like eyes went wide, seeing the ruins around them. "Bollocks, what happened here?" he questioned in shock.

"Good question. But I assure you, it was like this when we found it," Pierce explained. "Long story short, there's an evil copy of me with a metal arm and a gun somewhere around here, and he's probably going to attack us soon. When he shows, look at his heart and tell me anything useful," he quickly instructed with an air of urgency that warned Cor of the seriousness of the situation.

The young arbiter nodded. "Alright," He promptly located a nearby heap of debris and climbed on top of it, before craning his neck and giving the area a once-over, searching in every direction for a sign of their foe.

Instead, the qilin found his eyes caught by the light glinting off the barrel of a gun, with a hint of blond hair behind it. "Pierce!" he squeaked, recoiling and trying to cover his face.

The Phoenixes looked over at his exclamation, and Pierce was about to ask what had happened, but the loud noise of a gun going off told him exactly what was going on. "Cor!" he gasped, reaching for his flute, but already knowing there was no way he could stop the bullet. Grace began to move her arm to form a rift, but she hadn't had enough warning and wouldn't manage it in time. There was nothing anyone could do to stop the projectile from whistling through the air.

The bullet bounced harmlessly off the thick, crystalline scales on Cor's flanks and clattered to the ground.

"There!" Pierce shouted, immediately tracking the location of the sniper as soon as he was sure Cor was alright. As he rushed towards it, he quickly played the tune to recall Cor.

Behind him, Grace had frozen. "Scary Pierce," she squeaked.

"Maybe you should stay out of this one- whoa!" Cor attempted to advise her, but was cut off by the recall.

Dully, Grace nodded. She instinctually knew, she just didn't have it in her to attack Pierce. Even if he was Scary Pierce.

~P's E~

Kynigós blinked in shock. He'd followed the music, and soon found a monster with scales that glinted like rubies clambering on top of a hill, almost as though it was intentionally making itself a target. He couldn't believe his luck - it was too good to pass up, and it had been so long since he'd had a real hunt . . surely it wouldn't hurt.

So, in seconds, he had positioned himself in a window-frame that was no longer attached to a house, aimed and shot.

And now someone who looked just like him had come out of nowhere with a flute and looked pissed as hell.

Kynigós was already leaving his spot and dashing to his left, out of the way of what was obviously his own Earth Land counterpart. Who looked pretty angry.

His eyes widened as a blast of fire blew the window frame into scorched rubble, and, even as he ran, he chanced a look to see that his double had his lips clamped around a flute, of all things, which he was apparently shooting rapidfire musical fireballs out of. Okay then. He had an answer for that, of course.

(But seriously, what the fuck? Was weaponised music normal in Earth Land?)

~P's E~

Pierce leapt onto the pile of rubble and pivoted, glaring at his double. "Who are you?" he demanded.

"I'm Deadeye Pierce Kynigós, the most skilled hunter in Edolas. And, by the looks of things, I'm going to extend that title to this world too," Kynigós retorted.

"Oh yeah? Well, I am Pierce Blastreyne, Beast Tamer wizard. And I won't let you hurt me or my friends!" Blastreyne ascertained.

"What, like that walking jewellery store I saw a few moments ago? Wow, you really are a hippie," Kynigós tched, back-pedalling. He was a ranged fighter, he needed distance between himself and his target.

He son on the balls of his feet as Blastreyne spat another fireball out of his flute, before hissing, "He is a living being,"

"So am I. And I gotta eat," Kynigós retorted.

It was then Blastreyne did something Kynigós didn't expect; he started playing the flute. Blastreyne grinned, from what he'd heard, in Edolas magic worked differently. Meaning he probably had no idea what was about to happen.

With a flash of light, a massive, black kraken emerged from the flute and squealed menacingly - and then paused, blinking. "Pierce?" Inky questioned, twisting around in confusion.

"He's an evil version of me! Hit him!" Pierce shouted, realising a little too late the trouble Inky would have differentiating between friend and foe in this situation.

"No! He's the evil one! Attack him!" Kynigós immediately worked out where this was going and decided to take advantage of the confusion.

Inky blinked her massive eyes, looking between the two Pierces. "What - who's my Pierce?"

"Hit the Pierce with a metal arm!" Blastreyne clarified. Inky nodded, she could see that the Pierce wearing khaki had one hand that was silver and metal. She promptly lashed out with several of her tentacles, but Kynigós jumped away in a fluid series of motions that carried him over, under and around each of the flailing limbs. Blastreyne had enough time to be impressed by his double's reflexes, before, reaching into his pack with his metal arm, the boy pulled a metal pole out of his bag as he leapt over Inky's latest assault and, spinning in mid-air as his weapon crackled with electricity, slammed it down on her limb.

Inky spasmed uncontrollably as electricity coursed through her body and her eight long limbs flopped to the ground. Kynigós savagely grinned, exchanging his pole for a serrated knife that gleamed in the dim light that filtered through the dark clouds overhead.

Blastreyne's eyes widened. He had specifically chosen to call Inky because her thick skin was bulletproof. But that knife looked like it was specifically designed to cut into beings like her. She might as well be made of butter. "No!" he shouted, dashing forwards and putting himself between Inky's body and Kynigós. It would be really handy to have a sword right about now. He should definitely get one. Eventually.

"You're a pain, you know that?" Kynigós tched.

Blastreyne pressed his flute to his lips and blew. Knowing what was coming, the hunter ducked away as a flaming musical note rocketed through the space where his head had been, and by the time he recovered, Blastreyne had played the recoil tune to return Inky to his flute.

The two blonds stared each other down, Kynigós having pulled his rifle out in a fluid motion. It was a stalemate.

Blastreyne took several steps back, and eyed an emancipated wall that he could use for cover for the brief moment it would take him to summon the third bulletproof beast he had.

Kynigós advanced, a carnivorous smile playing across his lips. If his double was going to give him ground, he wouldn't pass it up.

In a frenzied motion, the native Pierce skipped behind the wall and frantically began playing the snake charmer tune he'd set to summon Cubelios. Knowing that Blastreyne would expect him to follow him and attack from the same direction, Kynigós instead cut right, planning to go around the ruin and attack the other Pierce's blind spot.

Instead, when he reached his opening, there was a giant snake hissing at him.

"Not even surprised," Kynigós tched, ducking aside as Cubelios lashed forwards with a snarl and pulled a spray-gun from a pocket, which he triggered. Immediately, a heady aroma of flowers filled the air, and Cubelios, who had been hostile to Kynigós based on the fact that he looked similar to her friend Pierce but smelled completely different, was suddenly confused. Now she couldn't smell anything but flowers . . but she still had the foe in her sights.

Blastreyne, with a flying leap, clambered onto the giant snake's head and perched there, patting her head when her eyes flicked upwards. "Don't worry, girl, it's me," he reassured her, and Cubelios almost seemed to nod, before darting forwards and lashing at Kynigós.

"What gives? That should have confused her!" Kynigós demanded in irritated confusion as he dashed aside again. Blastreyne raised his eyebrows. That had been quite intelligent of his snake . . maybe she was smarter than he gave her credit for.

Suddenly, a thought struck him. "Cubelios, gas him!" he quietly commanded, and, obligingly, the enchanted serpent reared upwards and roared, emitting a colourless gas from her mouth that wafted forwards and enveloped the hunter.

"Raya?" he added with a grin to his flute, before blowing on it and launching a fireball. His eyes widening, Kynigós pulled a string on his khaki jacket with one hand and covered his head with a hood using the other, and coatings of black material emerged from his shoulders and waist, coating his body seconds before fire enveloped him.

When the dust cleared, Blastreyne stared in surprise at his counterpart, who was now covered by what seemed to be a fireproof cloak - a suspicion that was confirmed when he removed the hood and smirked as the lining retracted into his jacket. "You honestly think I've never dealt with fire before?" Kynigós smirked, raising his gun and aiming at Cubelios' eye.

Seconds before he fired, however, a white blur erupted from the crack in Blastreyne's flute and swept downwards. "Why didn't you tell me the Trials were off? I could have been helping out for ages!" Kit irritably shouted, even as he dove into Kynigós' gun. "Hah! Got your gun!" the rifle mocked its owner.

Kynigós pulled a chalky white stone out of his hunter's pack and smashed it against his gun, scattering dust and chips over the notched barrel - and suddenly Kit had left it and bolted away, rushing back to the relative safety of Cubelios. "What the hell was that?" he demanded, looking himself over as soon as he was safely at his partner's feet.

"A mineral that neutralises ectoplasm. You aren't the first spirit I've dealt with," Kynigós retorted.

"I feel so dirty!" Kit whined.

"Oh, shush, you," Blastreyne sighed. "Cubelios?"

The winged viper obligingly hissed, darting forwards and opening her mouth wide, prepared to bite Kynigós in half. But the hunter pulled an extending metal pole seemingly out of nowhere and rammed it into the snake's mouth, where it immediately extended further and wedged her jaw open. Cubelios coughed, before exhaling, and Kynigós recoiled as a poisonous purple mist began to waft towards him from the back of her throat. He danced backwards and raised his gun once more, planning to shoot the snake in the top of her mouth, so that the bullet would penetrate the soft, unprotected inside of her mouth, hit her brain and kill her instantly.

Seeing no immediate magical way to save his beast, Blastreyne instinctively resorted to something remarkably unorthodox; in a fluid motion, he raised his left leg, pulled off one of his sandals and threw it at his counterpart.

The unconventional attack was so unexpected that Kynigós merely watched as the shoe flipped through the air, his eyes following it as it span through an arc - and hit him in the face. The sandal clattered to the ground, and Kynigós returned his gaze to his foe just in time to see Blastreyne and Kit land as Cubelios vanished back into the flute, leaving the pole that had wedged her mouth open to clatter to the ground.

Kynigós' eyes darted to the shoe at his feet, half expecting it to actually be a bomb or something. When he was certain that yes, it was indeed just an ordinary sandal, he cast an incredulous glare at his double. "What the _fuck_ was that?" he demanded.

"A good distraction. After all, it saved Cubelios' life," Blastreyne smirked. "And please don't swear. Grace might be in earshot," Now that the shock of meeting a copy of himself, and the adrenaline rush that had occurred when he had believed Cor's life to be in danger, had worn off, he was starting to approach this fight more rationally, and realised he could take advantage of his foe's anger.

"I'll swear whenever the fuck I want!" Kynigós raged, bringing his rifle down and shooting the sandal out of sheer fury. The leather sole explored into several pieces, and Blastreyne winced. "Now that was just uncalled for," he frowned, before playing his flute once again.

With a buzz, Victoria emerged, the massive queen bee appearing between them. "Evil Pierzzzze. Knox filled me in," she confirmed, and Blastreyne grinned. "Excellent. Keep him distracted, I need some time," he commanded, and Victoria nodded. "You got it," With that, she took off, swerving away from her Tamer and Kit like a giant blimp.

"You have a plan," Kit observed, and Blastreyne nodded. "First we need to get out of sight," he commanded and broke in the opposite direction to Victoria.

Kynigós looked between his two enemy parties and cursed, realising the situation that his double had put him in. Knowing that if he went after the flutist, he left himself vulnerable to an attack, he had no choice but to pursue the giant bee, even though he was fully aware that she was liable to be recalled at any minute and he would be forced to waste precious minutes locating his double once more. He growled, realising that Blastreyne was using his head, and knew that he would need to outthink his enemy.

He shook his head as he dashed after the monster. He wasn't used to facing intelligent prey; whether they were animals or soldiers, his enemies were usually dumb and predictable. This was outside of his comfort zone, but he had no choice.

At least he could put a few bullets in the giant bee.

~P's E~

"Cor? Can you get out through the crack?" Blastreyne whispered into his flute. It shook for a second, and then the ruby qilin emerged, looking around. "I suppose the fight's still going on, then. Why did you call me? You know I can't fight," Cor reasoned, keeping low and out of sight against the garden wall behind which they were crouched.

"Victoria's off distracting the faker," Kit explained.

"Me and him are too evenly matched. If I'm gonna win this fight, I need some sort of edge. Something I can use against him," Blastreyne explained.

"You want me to look into his heart," Cor realised, and nodded. "Got it. But I need direct line of sight, remember? And that means I'll be a target,"

"Don't worry, he's distracted," Blastreyne reassured him.

"I'll scout. I'm a yokai, bullets pass straight through me," Kit suggested, and his partner nodded. "Good idea,"

Obligingly, Kit leapt onto the wall and watched the block of destroyed houses across the road, where Victoria was flitting around with surprising agility and the occasional gunshot rang out. Eventually Kynigós appeared, perched on top of an emancipated chimney, and seemed to be wielding some sort of slingshot.

"Now!" Kit hissed, and Cor nodded, popping his antlered head up and staring at the distant hunter. "Okay," he murmured. "Oh dear . . oh, bollocks . . what is _wrong_ with this guy? . . . wait, is that . . oh, no freaking way, it couldn't be . ." Eventually he wrested his gaze away from the hunter and looked back at Blastreyne. "Okay, I know what you have to do. Summon Raya, and make sure he hears her name,"

"What?" Blastreyne blinked, confused.

"Trust me," Cor enigmatically replied. "I should probably go back in the flute now,"

"Okay," Blastreyne nodded, quickly playing his recall tune, and Cor vanished.

"Summon Raya, and make sure Kynigós hears her name?" Kit repeated, mystified. "Why?"

"No idea. But Cor has to know what he's on about, and I was gonna summon her sooner or later anyway," Blastreyne shrugged. An odd whirring noise rang out, and he chanced a glance above the wall, immediately noticing that Kynigós had trapped Victoria in an emancipated tower with some kind of glowing blue net, and he rapidly played her recall tune.

The hunter distantly cursed as Victoria vanished, leaving the net he had used to trap her empty, and immediately span on his perch atop a second-storey ruinous battlement, pointing his gun in the general direction where he had last seen his counterpart, sweeping the area with his free hand over his eyes and searching for any sign of Blastreyne.

Gritting his teeth, Blastreyne broke cover, vaulting over the wall and playing his flute as he ran towards Kynigós, weaving left and fit to make himself harder to target with the rifle. A gunshot rang out, and a spray of dust was kicked up to his left.

But then the melody was complete, and a portal flashed into being. Blastreyne skidded on his heals and jumped, passing cleanly over the portal as a majestic orange-and-gold phoenix emerged from it. With ease, the Tamer landed on her back as Raya screeched and flapped, going airborne. "Let's show him what we've got, Raya!" Blastreyne declared, pitching his voice to ensure that his counterpart clearly heard every word.

The effect was immediate.

Kynigós' eyes widened, and his grip slackened, the barrel of his gun tipping towards the ground. "Raya," he soundlessly mouthed.

Both boy and phoenix noticed the change in their enemy. "What happened?" Raya squawked, and Blastreyne raised an intrigued eyebrow. "Exactly what Cor expected to happen - whatever that may be. Take us down, we might just be able to talk this out now,"

Still on guard, but trusting her partner, Raya glided downwards and landed on the ruins near Kynigós, who had let his gun fall into his lap and buried his head in his sole remaining flesh hand.

"Pierce Kynigós, right?" Blastreyne asked as Raya leant forwards and he inched along her neck so that they could get closer to him. The boy flinched and wheeled, scooping up his gun in his metal arm and levelling it straight at them. But, after staring at them for a second, he sighed and lowered it. "That monster. You called her Raya,"

"Yes, because that's her name. And she's a beast, not a monster," Blastreyne's tone was firm, but gentle.

Kynigós barked a humourless laugh. "What's the difference?"

"A monster is an emotionless creature bent only on death and destruction. A beast, though, is a living being with feelings and a conscious desire to live, who only fights or kills when necessary for survival," the Tamer explained. "Also, there's _no such thing_ as a monster,"

His double's description brought an image of Erza Knightwalker to the front of Kynigós' mind. "That might be the case, but you're still wrong. There is such a thing as a monster, and I've hunted them,"

Blastreyne was unnerved by the steel in his counterpart's voice, and decided not to argue the point.

"That said . ." Kynigós continued after a beat. "I can accept that they're two different things," he admitted.

"Well, that's progress," Blastreyne smiled.

Kit appeared on the wall nearby, but, after exchanging a glance with Raya, realised they shouldn't interrupt.

The hunter turned and glared at him. "Seriously, though. Why the hell is this world's version of my girlfriend a giant bird?"

Both Blastreyne and Raya were dumbstruck by this statement. "This -" the boy tried to repeat the words, but their meaning had yet to sink in. "What?" he settled for.

"Wait, there's a version of me that's _human_?" Raya squeaked, and Kynigós flinched. "It talks?!"

Both beast and Tamer shot him an unimpressed look.

"Whatever. Where I'm from, only humans and cats talk," Kynigós huffed. "And yeah. Raya, my little minx. She was . ." A ghost of a smile appeared on his face for a moment, but he sighed. "Maybe this is better. I'm not sure I could handle seeing her, of all people, again," The pain in his voice was evident.

Blastreyne's brow furrowed. "If that's the case, why did you come here? To our world?"

"Not on purpose, I'll tell you that," Kynigós shrugged, and gave him a brief recap of the events that had occurred in the deserts of Edolas, aiding Tyria and Lync and forcing Monday to send them back to Earth Land, culminating in his portal becoming unstable and sucking him in after them.

"So you didn't come here to kill me?" Blastreyne blinked.

"What? Hell no. Why would I want to do that?" Kynigós demanded, both confused and annoyed by the accusation.

"When I heard from Grace about . . what had happened to your Phoenix's Eye . . I thought that you might have gone mad with grief and convinced yourself that if you came to our world and killed me, you could somehow replace me," the Tamer summarised.

"That's stupid," Kynigós flatly stated. "I'm with him on this one, Pierce," Raya agreed. "You really should run your crackpot theories by me before you implement them," she suggested.

"Okay, maybe in hindsight it is a little," Blastreyne agreed.

"So . . we're cool?" Kynigós asked.

"So long as you don't try to kill my beasts again . . yeah. We're cool, Pierce," Blastreyne agreed.

"Right back at you, Pierce," That ghost of a smile flitted across Kynigós' face again.

"So, what are you gonna do now?" Pierce Blastreyne asked. "Go home?"

"Why bother? There's nothing for me there anymore," Pierce Kynigós shook his head. "And I did kill the only guy around who could get me back there," he added, ignoring the concerned expression that flitted across his counterpart's face. "I guess I'll take what comes. And for the time being, that means helping you lot against these Kairos End people. After that . . I dunno. I've got time to think it over, after all,"

The Tamer opened his mouth to respond, but a shout interrupted them. "Reality Dragon's Roar!" Grace, who had appeared out of nowhere several feet away in mid-air, shouted, blasting the hunter off the wall and sending him crashing to the ground two storeys below.

Pierce blinked, watching him fall, before turning back to his sister. "Grace!" he moaned. "The fight's over, we're done!"

"Oh - sorry!"

~P's E~

Eternity's brow furrowed. He had been watching the various signs that a battle was going on from across the town, and still had Master Feng bound by an amorphous black mass. "Well, that certainly seems interesting. That wouldn't happen to be one of your little . . companions," he settled on, "would it?"

"It could just as easily be one of your cronies," Feng retorted.

"Most likely both. Now, how about we go investigate? Perhaps the Sempiternal Phoenix will be in that direction. And I might help my people," he darkly smiled.

~P's E~

Back in the town square, Lorus, using his photokinesis, watched Eternity dash away. "He is absconding," the man reported. "It seems that the fight on the far side of the town attracted his attention,"

"Well, this is our chance, then," Tyria pointed out. "We gotta rescue Garrotte, Sarph and Artorias,"

"We'll never get a better chance than this, he agreed heartily," Wesley weighed in.

"But that's one of our friends over there. We can't just leave them to him," Eve quietly pointed out.

Lorus hummed thoughtfully. "Blanca, my seductive villainess. Could you possibly perform that plastic car spell again?"

"Of course! I'm the best at making cars!" Blanca agreed.

"Excellent. The hero and his villainess will strike up an alliance that is unlikely on the surface but preordained at its core, and take advantage of the machinations of of our common enemy to combine our magical skills and rescue our allies from their peril, whilst our motley band of companions shall stage a rescue mission to disable the guard and abscond with the remainder of our compatriots!" Lorus looked at his companions expectantly, seemingly expecting them to break out in applause after his overdramatic monologue.

The other five wizards looked at each other. "Did anyone get a word of that?" Lync questioned.

"I think he said he and Blanca would go rescue our friends from that guy who captured Master, while the rest of us go get the S-Classes," Tyria guessed.

"In that case, Eve's coming too. I'm the best at S-Class Trials, and I'll prove that even if the Trials are suspended! And I need my partner for that!" Blanca declared, grabbing Eve's arm. The Celestial wizard meekly nodded. "O-okay,"

"Great," Tyria grinned as the group separated. "Let's go!"

A/N

 **A/N**

 **We got Pierce vs Pierce! Awesome!**

 **Also, I hope that referring to them both by surname wasn't too disconcerting. I got the idea from the canon Erza vs. Erza fight, where they called each other 'Scarlet' and 'Knightwalker' respectively. It's a technique I'm going to keep up as long as they're in each other's company, but don't worry, it won't last for long.**

 **Alright. {deep breaths} Chapter 65 is up next. I've been both looking forwards to and dreading this one, because a lot of things will happen. And everything's gonna go to hell.**

 **Peace.**


	65. Everything Goes To Hell

Chapter 65: Everything Goes To Hell

"Alright. Hit him hard and hit him fast. The idea is, take him down before he realises what's going on," Tyria explained to Lync and Wesley.

The three were preparing to attack Clockwork, Kairos End's End of Thursday (not that they actually knew his name or title) and one of the dark guild's eight Ends of Days, who was standing guard over the unconscious Sarph, Garrotte and Artorias.

"Sounds good to me," Lync nodded. "My magic has a lot of speed behind it. I should be the one to launch the opening strike,"

"Yeah. After that I'll occupy his attention. Wesley, dart around and keep him off-balance, don't give him an opportunity to fire off any really powerful attacks. Lync, after you've hit him, you'll need to get the S-Classes out of the crossfire. They're already pretty banged up, I don't want to leave them in the middle of a fight," Tyria explained.

"This is a good plan, Wesley agreed whole-heartedly," the Ball wizard nodded, rattling his blue light armour.

"It feels weird to plan out an attack. We usually don't get enough notice of a fight to prepare like this," Lync mused.

"We'd better take advantage of it then. This guy is one of Kairos End's Ends of Days. It's gonna be a really tough fight against him," Tyria pointed out.

"Alright. Airnvention: Plating!" Lync commanded, shedding his prized green fur coat to ensure it didn't get damaged, and silver/green skintight armour coated his body, with fins protruding. "Airnvention: Rockets!" he added, and rocket boosters manifested around each of his forearms. "On three," he declared, and his teammates nodded. "One . . two . . THREE!" he barked, and his Rockets ignited, lifting him upwards before throwing him forwards. Tyria and Wesley dashed after him, across the road that separated them from the impromptu prison.

Lync smashed through a wall and collided directly with Clockwork, pushing him with him into the next wall and smashing through it, leaving the engineer, in his own green/brown leather armour, sprawled in the hole. Lync hastily stopped his acceleration, landed, and smashed another hole in the wall that allowed him direct access to the S-Class wizards. Dispelling his Rockets, he snatched up Garrotte and began looking for a safe place to put him.

Meanwhile, Tyria and Wesley arrived, keeping their eyes fixed on their enemy, fully expecting him to pick himself up and tell them that it had been unwise to attack him at any second.

Clockwork lay there, motionless and apparently out cold.

They waited for a moment, tensed for combat, until Tyria frowned. "Is he actually down already?" she questioned in disbelief, striding over to the man and eyeing him, fully prepared for a sneak attack. When nothing came, she cocked her head and poked him in the chest.

Nothing. She waved a hand in front of the old man's face, poked him again, and even lifted open his eyelids to check.

"He's down," the blue-haired Electrian finally confirmed with a shrug.

"Seriously?" Lync demanded. "It was that easy?"

"It would appear so, he shrugged," Wesley weighed in.

"Hold on. I hear something," the dark-skinned girl shushed them both, before scrambling up the broken bricks and carefully looking above the wall.

Fleur, along with a blond boy with fang-shaped blue glasses covering most of his face and a white coat, was running towards them.

"We might have a problem. Fleur and a boy I don't recognise are coming towards us,"

"If Fleur's with him, he has to be friendly, right?" the salmon-haired Vestal frowned.

"Unless he's controlling her somehow," Tyria reasoned.

By then, the two were right outside the ruin they were in, and Lync peered around the corner to see for himself. He gasped, and grinned, striding out from cover. "Hey! Masquerade! Good to see you!" he grinned, striding out from cover.

Tyria' jaw dropped. "Lync? What are you doing?" she demanded, rushing after him.

The four met in the middle of the road, the two boys grinning, Tyria half expecting a fight and Fleur looking somewhat confused.

"Tyria, relax, it's cool. This is Masquerade, Alice's . ." Lync blinked, suddenly unsure how to quantify the . . unique relationship Alice and Masquerade shared.

"Brother," the Brawler supplied, and Lync nodded. "Close enough,"

Tyria frowned. "Close enough?" she parroted, unwilling to let go of her suspicions.

Lync and Masquerade exchanged a glance. Now was not a good time to go into the specifics of their relationship. Luckily, a suggestion wafted to the front of Masquerade's mind out of Alice's subconscious, and he explained, "I'm Alice's brother in the same sense that Pierce is Grace's brother,"

"Ah," Tyria digested this, and nodded, deciding she could accept that for the time being. She looked around. "Where is Alice, anyway?"

"That's what I'm hoping to find out," Masquerade lied flawlessly. "I suppose you haven't seen her?"

"Nope," Lync shook his head, quickly catching on and playing along with the ruse. "But come on, both of you. We need to wake up the S-Classes,"

Tyria cast one last questioning look at Fleur, who nodded and gave her a reassuring thumbs up. "Okay. This way. Once everyone's ready, we need to go meet up with Blanca, Eve and Lorus. Then we can find Pierce, Grace, Boomer, Hare and Alice, and go rescue Master. That guy we saw holding her hostage won't stand a chance with all of us against him," she grinned.

~P's E~

"I'm sorry that I . . acted how I did last time we met," The apology wasn't as sincere as Pierce Blastreyne would have liked, but Grace seemed fine with it, so he decided to let Pierce Kynigós lack of empathy slide.

"It's okay," Grace grinned back.

The three wizards (and Kit) had regrouped on the ground, and Blastreyne had insisted that Kynigós apologise to Grace. Under the circumstances, he decided to take what he could get.

"So, I heard a lot about this 'Dragon Slayer magic' stuff back in Edolas, including that apparently you have it. What's the story with that whole mess?" Kynigós asked.

"Dragon Slayer magic is a really special and really powerful kind of magic. People made it hundreds of years ago to kill dragons!" Grace animatedly explained, looking excited at the thought.

"So it's a kind of magic that lets people hunt dragons, huh?" Kynigós asked, looking interested. Sure, there weren't any dragons in Edolas, but there were stories and legends. And the same could be said of phoenixes and krakens, but he'd barely been in this world for an hour and he'd already seen both. So, given the situation, he was completely prepared to accept that dragons, in this world, anyway, really did exist.

Grace choked, and suddenly looked a little ill. "Uh, maybe . . but I wouldn't actually use it that way!" she frantically protested.

Kynigós hummed thoughtfully. "I see . . hey, Blastreyne. Do you have a dragon in that flute of yours?"

Blastreyne blinked in surprise. "No, of course not. Dragons are ancient and powerful creatures. They see us humans like we see insects. They'd never consent to letting me Tame them,"

"Really?" A smirk crept across the hunter's face. "Now that sounds like a _challenge_ ,"

Pierce wasn't entirely comfortable with the way he said 'challenge'. It reminded him a little too much of Erza Scarlet. "They're also extinct," he flatly stated.

Kynigós blinked, and sighed. "Oh. Of course they are," he sighed.

Blastreyne drew to a halt, sweeping an arm out to stop Grace from passing him, and his smile vanished. Kynigós drew up, before instinctively leaping backwards and resting a hand on his gun's muzzle. Grace looked at her brother in confusion, before following his gaze and squeaking as she saw what the two boys were looking at.

Eternity, still clad in his obsidian-looking armour with a hood covering his face, and wielding his black steel staff with a fist on one end and a clock hand on the other. Master Feng was nowhere to be found.

"So, I see a couple of little birdies are still squawking around. I'll have to fix that," Eternity darkly smiled. Then he noticed the two nearly identical boys. His eyebrows slid together over his red eyes, coated in eyeshadow as they were, and his wrinkled lips quieted. "Not to mention an unexpected newcomer. I take it this means that Monday has fallen and the Phoenix's Eye of Edolas has come to the aid of the Earth Land Phoenixes?"

Pierce Blastreyne opened his mouth to respond, but Kynigós beat him to it. "That's right. We just couldn't say no to a request like that. Our entire guild's here, and they're all ready to take you and your buddies down,"

"Is that so?" Eternity mused, scrutinising the metal-armed hunter. "You're lying. I watched the Anima as it closed. Three went in and three came out. And, since Monday has not reported in to me in some time, I can only assume that he is stranded in Edolas,"

"Let me put it this way. I hope you weren't counting on seeing him again," Kynigós smirked.

Eternity tched. "As a matter of fact, I rather was. But, no matter. I can still execute my designs without him,"

Blastreyne frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, a lowly ordinary wizard like yourself couldn't possibly understand, _Pierce_ ," The Tamer was surprised that their enemy knew his name. "And I certainly don't hope you expect little Grace behind you to comprehend my machinations. However, know this," At this, the man lifted his staff into the air, before slamming it down into the ground and letting his beady, red eyes stare into theirs. "My name is Eternity. I am the Guild Master of Kairos End, one of the four Dark Guilds of the Balam Alliance. The members of my guild and I have come here for two reasons. The first is to locate the Sempiternal Phoenix. The second is to bring about the end of every member of the Phoenix's Eye guild in this miserable wreck of a town," he explained, leering at the Phoenixes with utter disdain.

Kynigós rolled his eyes, and, in a fluid motion, unslung his rifle and shot him.

With a low whistle, the bullet whizzed through the air, before coming to a halt mere feet from Eternity's chest, the man looked down at the tiny chunk of metal in surprise, and chuckled. "Very good," he praised the hunter in a tone of voice that made it unclear as to whether or not he was being sarcastic. "I think I like you,"

"Forgive me if I don't take that as a compliment," Kynigós sardonically retorted, before pulling a cartridge out of his pouch, sliding it into his gun, and firing again. Blastreyne blinked. Throughout their fight, he had never seen Kynigós reload. He had assumed that his gun was equipped with a magic bullet generator - which was standard fare for guns in this day and age, all things considered. So why was he loading it?

Again, the bullet stopped feet away from Eternity, and the man snorted. "I see you don't learn, though,"

"Oi, Grace, was it? I saw you do that teleport thing. Can you do that to all three of us?" Kynigós whispered.

"Uh, yeah, I think so," Grace shrugged.

"Great. Do it on three," Kynigós hissed.

"What are you doing?" the Kairos frowned, stepping forwards. The two bullets were only inches away now - evidently whatever magic he had used to halt them didn't move with them.

"Three!" Kynigós barked, and, shocked into action, Grace tore open a hole in space and time five inches underneath their feet, just as Kynigós snapped his fingers and added, "Bang!"

As the road collapsed underneath them into the rift and the three Phoenixes fell into it, the second bullet that was being held in place by Eternity's magic exploded. The unexpected attack caught the Guild Master off guard and knocked him backwards, and by the time he had recovered, the three were gone. He cursed, before smiling. "Edolas' Pierce is quite something. I wonder if I could recruit him?"

~P's E~

Two streets over, the three landed amid a pile of debris that had once been the road under their feet. "Is everyone okay?" Grace frantically asked. "No missing fingers?"

Both Pierces checked themselves over. "I'm good," Kynigós confirmed. "Same," Blastreyne agreed, before turning on his counterpart. "What was that? That you used?"

"Voice-activated explosive bullets. My father developed them to hunt Teratoads, which are a sort of giant frog with rubbery skin that normal bullets won't penetrate. I've been saving them," Kynigós explained. Blastreyne nodded and turned away, but the other Pierce didn't miss how his expression had soured st the mention of his father. "Something wrong?"

Blastreyne tched. "It figures that you'd get along with your - my - whatever. Our - father," he huffed, a little more bitingly than he'd intended.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kynigós demanded with a grimace. "My father was the greatest hunter of the era, possibly in all of the history of Edolas, and one of my Phoenix's Eye's biggest names before he died. He inspired loads of people. Including me,"

"And I suppose no one was bothered by the inhumane breeding mills and all the illegal money he made selling their bodies off on the black market?" Blastreyne retorted.

Now it was Kynigós turn to be shocked, though it rapidly turned to outrage . "Wha . . no! My father never did anything like that! He was a good man, he respected the creatures he hunted, and he only ever took what he needed from them. He'd never do anything like . . ." the metal-armed boy trailed off as both blonds came to the same conclusion. Two Pierces meant two Jarods.

"Your dad sounds like a dick," Kynigós finally offered.

"He was. Yours, on the other hand, doesn't sound so bad. Y'now, for a hunter," Blastreyne replied, not comfortable with the idea of an 'ethical hunter'.

The hunter accepted the compliment, before looking around. "We should move. That Eternity guy is probably still around here somewhere,"

"Yeah. I think we should head for the town square; that was the meeting point. The Garuda's not there anymore," which Blastreyne knew because the airship's massive red gasbag was absent from the skyline, "but the Sonic Boom should still be there. Which means Boomer will be back to get it. We can meet him there,"

"As long as he hasn't already been and gone," Grace pointed out, and her brother shrugged. "It's a chance we'll have to take. Let's go,"

The three set off, following Pierce Blastreyne's lead as he led them towards the town square.

~P's E~

Meanwhile, Eternity was feeling the twinges of impatience. "You know what?" the aged man glared at his opposite equivalent as he levitated Master Feng out of the hole that he had hidden her in. "I'm sick of this,"

"Do elaborate," the Phoenix dryly requested. "I suppose I wouldn't be lucky enough for that to mean you'll give up and go home?"

"Hardly," the Kairos tched. "If I can't find the Sempiternal Phoenix, I will force it to find me," With that, he, also, turned and began making his way towards the centre of town, Master Feng's magical prison following behind him and dragging her with it.

"What are you talking about?" Feng demanded, her brow furrowing.

Eternity didn't deign to respond, only striding resolutely forwards - until he spotted something in the distance.

Whooping for joy and making for the place where they had seen the signs of battle, Blanca was driving her massive, colourful plastic car down the ruined road, with Lorus riding shotgun and Eve crouched in the back. Eternity's eyebrow twitched higher and higher as the car barrelled straight towards him. "I suppose those are your people?" he off-handedly commented in Master Feng's direction.

"Indeed they are," Feng nodded, a hint of pride in her voice, before she took a deep breath. "Blanca! Lorus! You need to get out of -" A tendril of black energy wrapped around her mouth, cutting her off mid-sentence.

Eternity tched. "As much as I would love to engage in a game of cat and mouse with your little pets, I do have something to be getting on with. So," he raised his staff, and the fingers of the fist adorning the upper part of it now raised and held flat with the palm. He then span it in his hands before using the metal hand to slap the ground and commanded, "May!" as an invisible bell rang five times.

Blanca, still speeding towards the man who was holding Master captive, shrieked at Eternity, "I'm the best at rescuing Guild Masters! And you won't stop me!" as a shockwave of golden energy flashed across the ground.

Suddenly, for the three inhabitants of the plastic car, the entire world dimmed and began to go out of focus as the shock wave knocked the car off its wheels and threw it into the air. Master Feng watched, horrified, as the car span end over end above her and Eternity, before crashing into the ground behind them on its roof. With a flash, it disintegrated, leaving Blanca, Eve and Lorus sprawled against the road behind them, unmoving.

Eternity tched and kept walking.

~P's E~

Soon, the two Pierces and Grace arrived at the town square. The Sonic Boom was gone, meaning Boomer had obviously passed through, and there was no sign of anyone else. "You might want to rethink your theory on where to meet your friends," Kynigós huffed, but a low whistle interrupted them.

The three turned to see Garrotte's hat poking out from a chunk of wall, and Grace immediately teleported over. "Your hat's sticking out," she unhelpfully informed the Exceed, who huffed irritably as the two Pierces hurried towards them. "Wait a chicken-lickin' second. That's the other Pierce from that weird Edolas place. What's tha' son of a rattlesnake doin' in this neck o' the woods?" he questioned.

"It's a long story," Blastreyne shrugged.

"Short version; I'm here to help," Kynigós summarised.

"Right-o. Well, follow me. Most o' the gang's back together now - we're just missing Lorus, Blanca, Eve, Alice, Hydrahnoid and Mastah," Garrotte explained, leading the group back to the ruins down the road where the S-Class wizards had been held captive. The Sonic Boom jutted conspicuously out of what might have once been a large shed, and Boomer was scrubbing dust off it.

Tyria gasped and stood up, seeing both Pierces approach. She took one look at her Pierce and broke out out in a wide smile. "I'm so glad you're alright - wait. What happened to your shoe?" she blinked, noticing that one of Pierce's sandals was missing from his foot.

"It died a noble death," Pierce solemnly responded, before grinning. "I'm glad you're okay too,"

"Kynigós? What are you doing here?" she asked, focusing on the other Pierce.

Kynigós, who had paused for a second upon seeing the familiar look of love in Tyria Zechtian's eyes, decided to answer the question. "Turns out, when you kill the guy who's keeping a portal open, it goes out of control and starts sucking in everything around it. I couldn't escape," he explained.

"Well, we're glad to have the help," Lync offered with a smile, and Kynigós nodded. "You obviously need it, so I guess I might as well,"

"Sorry - I think I've missed something," Sarph frowned, cocking a golden-blond eyebrow. "Why is there a second Pierce with a metal arm and a gun?"

Tyria took a deep breath, before she, Lync and Kynigós launched into a quick explanation of their brief trip to Edolas, how they had run into Pierce's counterpart there, before Kynigós took over with a brief explanation of how he had been pulled through by the collapsing portal.

"An entire world without magic? Fascinating," Sarph mused, before a thought struck him. "You might want to tell Artorias about it. I'm not sure what that Eurydice person did to him, but I don't think he's come completely out of it yet. He could use a distraction," he suggested, gesturing to the Blood Mage, who was slumped against a wall, looking like he was suffering from PTSD.

"Sure," Tyria nodded, pulling Kynigós with her and dragging him over to Artorias.

"Alright!" Sarph shouted, lifting his sword and getting everyone's attention. "Since Artorias is a little out of it right now, I'm taking charge as the most senior member of the guild available. Hands up, who's taken down one of the members of Kairos End?"

Most of the assembled members gathered around him, and Boomer, Lync (since Tyria and Kynigós were occupied) and Masquerade raised their hands. Wesley looked like he wanted to, but realised he hadn't had much part in 'defeating' Clockwork.

Sarph blinked. "Really? Only three?"

"Me and Tyria took down two, with Other-Pierce and Wesley," Lync pointed out.

"Right. Except," Sarph frowned. "That _can't_ be right," He pulled up an Archive screen in front of himself and showed it to everyone. It depicted a map of Ghoulia and the surrounding area. "My research has told me that Kairos End is presided over by Guild Master Eternity -"

"Eternity? Grace, isn't that what the guy we fought called himself?" Pierce asked, and Grace nodded confirmation.

"You defeated him?" Sarph blinked, sounding surprised.

"Er, not quite," Grace looked nervous. "It was more of an . . escape," Pierce agreed.

"Understandable. Eternity is one of the most powerful dark wizards in Fiore. Even Master Feng couldn't beat him. Living to tell that you encountered him is achievement enough," the S-Class looked relieved. "Anyway. Master Eternity and his Seven Ends of Days. Having cross-referenced your descriptions of the Days you all fought, we can be pretty certain that Monday . . End of Monday," there were chuckles at this, "Eurydice, End of Tuesday, Clockwork, End of Thursday, and Aberforth, End of Saturday, have all been defeated,"

"So that leaves . ." Grace started to turn it over in her head, but Masquerade got there first. "Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, as well as Eternity himself,"

"Would have got there in a minute," Grace groused.

"Indeed. My Archive has tracked the Garuda, and playing back some feeds I got from it indicates that it was attacked. Having cross-referenced that fact with Fleur," the mute wizard brightened as her name was called, "telling us that Totomaru was planning to take the Garuda and go get help, implies that he and Sensho fought and repelled another one of those four. Unfortunately, I've been unable to get a fix on him, so we can't be sure," Sarph continued.

"So three left, right?" Boomer asked.

"You'd think so. But my scans are only detecting _two_ hostile wizards in Diamauros," the knight frowned.

"Isn't that a good thing, though? If one of our enemies is missing?" Pierce pointed out.

"Could be, could be," Sarph accepted. "Unless they aren't missing at all. These are the three Ends of Days that are unaccounted for," he pulled up pictures of Mordonna and another woman, along with Fred, and focused on the boy. "Fred, End of Wednesday, is a shapeshifter,"

There was a collective intake of breath at this. "A shapeshifter?" Hare repeated in disbelief.

"I thought those were an urban legend," Pierce agreed.

"Apparently not. It's such a rare power, and so difficult to attain, that not much is known about it. Including whether or not the people who use this sort of magic can mask their magic presence to my Archive. So if we can assume that one of the other two attacked the Garuda, then it's possible that Fred might still be somewhere out here, masking his magic presence by taking the form of an insect," Sarph finished his explanation.

"So, either two or three enemies left. But how do we fight someone like that, he asked as beats of worry broke out on his brow?" Wesley weighed in.

"You don't," Pierce Kynigós interrupted, shoving his way to the front of the group.

"What?" several of the Phoenixes asked in unison.

"Think about it. This shapeshifter guy, he can't attack without blowing his cover, right?" Kynigós pointed out.

"True. If he changed into something bigger, my scan would register him," Sarph admitted.

"So he's a non-factor until he decides to intervene. Worst case, he'll get off one surprise attack and then turn a fight against one enemy into a fight against two. And since there's no way to predict when or if that'll happen, there's no sense worrying about it until it does," the hunter explained.

"He's right," Masquerade stepped forwards. "And this is even if we don't consider the _other_ obvious reason that we might be facing one less enemy than we should be,"

"Explain?" Sarph cocked an eyebrow.

"When I fought that Assassin guy, he ran away as soon as it looked like I was about to win. He said something about 'not agreeing to give his life for a job', too. We're dealing with dark wizards, after all. Is it so unbelievable that one of them might have cut and run when it looked like things were going bad?" the Darkus Brawler questioned.

Pierce hummed, considering this. "He has a point," he admitted.

"Yeah. Take it from someone who's been in that position. The only reason a dark wizard has to _not_ betray their superiors is fear of the punishment they'll get if they get caught," Lync explained, before sighing in relief at the thought. "Man am I glad Hydron couldn't deliver on _that_ way back when,"

"I take your points," Sarph accepted. "Well, no matter either way, then. According to my map, the _weaker_ of the hostile wizards isn't far from Lorus, Blanca and Eve," he demonstrated, indicating the dots on his golden map of Diamauros.

"Why are they out there and not here, anyway?" Pierce Blastreyne asked, folding his arms.

"To help you," Lync told him with a smirk. "Guess it didn't go so well,"

"Oh," the Tamer blinked. He wasn't really sure whether to be upset that they had thought he would need rescuing, or worried for his guildmates.

"Point is, the stronger enemy, which I assume is Master Eternity, seems to be making his way towards us," Sarph demonstrated, focusing on another part of the map, where Eternity's dot was to the north-east of the town square, and the dots denoting the members of Phoenix'e Eye to the south-west.

"He thinks he can take on all of us? At once?" Grace blinked. "That's not very smart,"

"Perhaps he has some kind of strategy in mind. Perhaps he intends to pick us off one by one. Perhaps he's just that confident in his abilities," Sarph shrugged. "Either way, he can't get to us without passing through the town square. Which is the perfect place to ambush him," he grinned.

Kynigós smirked and nodded in approval. "Setting a trap. I like it,"

"We don't have a second to waste, we should move," Pierce Blastreyne declared. However, before anyone could more, Fleur whistled to get everyone's attention. Masquerade cocked an eyebrow. "Is something wrong?"

In response, the silver-haired Phoenix gestured to where Tyria was still crouching over Artorias, who was half-heartedly engaging in conversation about some of his favourite books.

"How is he?" Blastreyne took the initiative, walking over to the two. As he approached, Tyria looked up at him and shrugged helplessly as Artorias' conversation devolved into deep breaths. "I don't think he's in a condition to fight,"

"I see," Pierce gulped. "Will he be okay here by himself?"

"I . . I'll . . have to be . ." the S-Class wizard breathed in response. Pierce gave him a compassionate look, resting his hand on the older boy's shoulder. "Hey, Artorias. You're strong. You're better than this," he murmured to the redhead, who nodded, and muttered, "Go,"

"Okay," Tyria nodded, and the two rejoined the group.

"Alright. Boomer, hang back. The Sonic Boom's too big to hide, so you'll need to swoop in as soon as we give the signal. Everyone else, let's get moving!" Sarph commanded.

"Wait - what's the signal?" Boomer questioned, cocking a black eyebrow.

"Knowing how these things go, it'll probably be an explosion," Lync chuckled.

"I'll handle that. Trust me. You won't miss it," Masquerade added with a dark grin.

"Alright, let's go!" Pierce Blastreyna declared, striding forwards, then paused, noticing that everyone else was watching him - and, more importantly, not moving. "What are you waiting for? Come on!"

Sarph cracked a grin. "Whatever you say. _Team leader_ ," he added in a mutter.

~P's E~

Eternity strode across the town square, dragging Feng behind him. He looked around, before continuing.

The twelve Phoenixes were hiding in or around the ruined guild hall, watching him approach them. "Wait for it," Pierce Blastreyne hissed.

Eternity stopped in the middle of the square, standing with the destroyed fountain where Alice had found her key to his back, and a crooked smile graced his lips. "Really. Do you honestly think that just because I can't see you, I don't know that you're there?" he called in the direction of the hidden wizards.

"He can see us?" Grace squeaked in shock, looking at her brother in horror.

Pierce raised his eyebrows, knowing that Eternitu had to have heard her. "Well, he definitely knows we're here now. All _six_ of us," he called, standing up and letting Eternity see him. "Tyria, Fleur, Lync, Kynigos, come on out, the jig's up," He had carefully chosen the names on the spur of the moment so as to conceal the sequence of events, particularly the fact that the S-Class wizards had been rescued.

The named wizards appeared from their hiding places, along with Pierce and Grace. "Well, this sucks," Lync groaned, putting on a convincing show. "So much for the element of surprise,"

Eternity's eyebrows slid together. "I can see _all twelve_ of you,"

Sarph sighed, standing behind Pierce. "Nice try," he consoled, as the rest of the wizards made themselves known.

"Honestly. A pathetic effort at a surprise attack. Led by a wizard with only one shoe, no less," Pierce quickly glanced down at his naked foot, before casting a hurt glare at him. That was just uncalled for. "Was that really the best your little brats could do?" the Dark Guild Master snorted, looking at Master Feng, whose mouth was still covered.

"We can do a hell of a lot more!" Suddenly, Hare was right in front of Eternity, fist inches away from his nose - and then she froze. She was completely still, not even breathing.

Eternity grasped her arm, before spinning her around and throwing her at the feet of her guildmates. All the while, she didn't move an inch - it was as though Hare had been turned into a statue.

Pierce Blastreyne's eyebrows shot up. "What did you do?" he demanded.

"I stopped her time flow," Eternity simply responded. He snapped his fingers, and Hare's body went limp, before she shot up, breathing heavily and looking around, seeming disoriented. "What the hell just happened?" she demanded. "Did I hit him?"

"No," Pierce frowned, shaking his head. "Everyone! Now! Attack!"

"Way ahead of you! Amaterasu Formula 17!" Masquerade barked, launching a tower of purple seals into the air before crashing down on Eternity.

"February!" he barked, raising his staff, and a wave of white energy dispelled the attack as a distant bell chimed twice.

"Come on! There's twelve of us, and only one of him! It doesn't matter how powerful he is, no one can stand up to numbers like that!" Sarph shouted.

Fleur nodded and leapt forwards as the words, 'PETAL PUNCH' appeared, etched into her sword in fine calligraphy, and massive fists made of petals swept towards the enemy. "Wrecking Ball, he shouted!" Wesley added, launching a sphere of dark blue energy in the same direction, and Kynigós threw a bola for good measure, before darting away.

With unbelievable agility that no one could have expected from his withered form, Eternity leapt into the air and allowed the attacks to pass underneath him - only to find Sarph flying towards him with a vengeance. "My sword is the Spell-Shattering Sigil - Solamion!" he shouted, swinging it towards Eternity, who seemed to hang in mid-air with no care for gravity, and blocked with his staff.

"The Wave enchantments inlaid into its steel allow me to cut through the bond between a wizard and his spell!" Sarph declared.

"Good for you," Eternity snorted, before slamming his hand onto the flat of the longsword and shouting, "September!"

"Pointless," Sarph tched as a bell tolled, once, twice. And suddenly a flaw appeared in the golden blade. "What?"

The bell kept ringing, as cracks and chips appeared in the blade. Eternity shot they man a mocking grimace as Solamion aged before his eyes, and at the seventh ring, an entire piece of the sword broke away, falling to the ground. Around them, the other twelve wizards watched in horror.

The eighth ring saw more cracks run through the sword, and Sarph's eyes went wide as he suddenly realised what was happening. "No," he mouthed.

On the ninth toll of the bell, the golden blade shattered into pieces, crumbling into dust and slivers of metal under Eternity's hand. The knight lost his balance and pitched forwards, where Eternity kicked him away, before finally letting himself fall to the ground.

Sarph landed on his back, his Aera vanishing into dust, his eyes unable to leave the cracked and broken hilt of his sword. "No," he whispered.

Eternity looked around at the Phoenixes, who were all staring at either him or Sarph, and demanded, "Are you all quite done?"

The silence that followed was broken by a single noise; a heavy beat played against punk-rock electric guitar. Pierce grinned. That could only mean one thing. "Everyone charge! Keep him off-balance!" he shouted, blasting a series of fireballs at Eternity, who span to dodge them. One of the projectiles singed his cape. "Reality Dragon's Roar!" Suddenly, Grace was above him, blasting a funnel of grey energy all around the Kairos, and Eternity raised his staff, casting a shield to diffuse the attack around him.

"Barb!" With a crack of his whip, Garrotte sent metal spikes flying at the man, which Tyria backed up with her Machine Gun II, and Wesley threw another Ball, while Masquerade continued to fire off Amaterasu Formulas. Following the barrage, massive amounts of golden petals billowed from the scabbard of Fleur's rapier and the mute Phoenix leapt into the air as petals trailed behind her, forming ornate words from her magic; 'FINAL TECHNIQUE'. The shining golden petals formed around her sword, causing it to grow to a massive size. Stripes of red petals inlaid amongst the gold spelled out, for a brief moment, 'PETAL EXCALIBUR', before she brought the swollen weapon down on Eternity's head.

The onslaught caused Eternity to disappear behind a mass of attacks, a rainbow of magic attacking from every direction and kicking up smoke.

Meanwhile, Kynigós, knowing that if the native wizards weren't making a dent in this guy, he had no chance at all of helping, had turned his attention instead to freeing Master Feng. "I dunno who you are, but I guess you're important," he muttered to her, sawing at the dark magic tentacles keeping her pinned with a serrated hunting knife. Feng raised an eyebrows, but could say nothing.

After a minute, the wizards stopped, letting the smoke clear. "Is he down?" Lync, who had been watching the edges of the blast to make sure Eternity didn't escape the barrage, questioned.

With a wave of his staff, Eternity dispelled the smoke. His cloak was rather badly tattered and burnt, but otherwise the man seemed unaffected. "I see you all haven't accepted your fates ye -"

A blast of music cut him off as the Sonic Boom sped down the street, the central speaker primed and ready to fire. Boomer, in the driver's seat, clenched the steering wheel with white knuckles and channeled all of his magic power into the magic circuits that powered the vehicle, and shouted, in a voice amplified by the speakers of the vehicle to echo for miles around, _"Mega-Bass!"_

In a split second, the singularity of hyper-accelerated sound that was Boomer's ultimate attack shot out of the central speaker. The Sonic Boom ground to a halt, drained of magic power, and Eternity's eyes widened as the quantum paradox of the attack impacted, throwing him into the air.

Huffing and wheezing, Boomer grinned, and the Phoenixes on the ground exchanged glances. Had Boomer succeeded where the rest of them failed?

The smoke cleared, again, to reveal Master Eternity, still standing. "Well, now that wasn't bad," he admitted, peering at the Sonic Boom with interest. "Unfortunately, it just wasn't enough. And, after all, I do have a job to attend to," he sighed, lifting his staff into the air and reversing his grip on it, so that the fist faced downwards. "May!" he shouted, slamming it into the ground.

A shockwave of dark energy issued out, spreading in every direction, and as it reached him, Pierce Blastreyne felt himself somehow lose the will to move. He collapsed, feeling utterly drained, and, even though he knew that he had to get up, had to keep fighting, his body just wouldn't respond. Looking around, his guildmates all seemed to have suffered the same fate.

All except Masquerade. "That was negative energy, wasn't it?" the Dark Brawler asked with a cocky smile.

"Indeed. How strange. You seem unaffected," Eternity observed.

"What can I say? I'm special," Masquerade retorted, the light reflecting off his fang-shaped blue lenses as he tensed. "Amaterasu Formula 10!" he shouted, sending several spinning Amaterasu Seals at Eternity.

Eternity huffed as he took the attack without flinching. "That's incorrect," he shook his head, and levelled the clock hand of his staff at the boy. "June,"

Masquerade choked as much of the moisture was instantaneously drained out of his body. He collapsed, falling to his knees and feeling his energy be drained. "Urgh . . I . . I'm sorry, Alice. I wasn't enough," Masquerade moaned as golden energy built up, covering his body.

"Not so special after all, boy," Eternity tched.

With a shimmer, the golden light covering Masquerade's body shattered, dissipating into the air, and coat, boots and glasses vanished as his spiky blond hair softened and returned to being orange. Within seconds, Alice was slumped on the floor, unmoving, and, even under the effects of Eternity's magic, quiet gasps echoed through the circle of incapacitated wizards.

Eternity turned away, dismissing the defeated wizards. "Irrelevant. All of you. Only one thing matters here, and that's the Sempiternal Phoenix,"

Unable to convince his lips to move, Pierce Blastreyne absently wondered what that was.

"Feng Chriona. Since you've refused to _tell_ me where it is, I've decided I have no choice but to force it to show itself," Eternity declared with a frown, glaring at the bound Guild Master. "I was rather hoping Monday would be here, then I could make use of his ability to open an Anima to ensure that any side effects from the procedure would only affect the parallel world of Edolas. However, apparently that cannot be," he muttered darkly to himself, looking around at the downed Phoenixes. "I am sorely tempted to simply kill you all here and now in retribution for the assets you have cost me. Eurydice, Fred and Monday are all dead, and Aberforth has abandoned me. I'm not happy about that. But you might be useful yet, so I will allow your continued existence. For the time being," he muttered.

"But now! Observe, Feng Chriona, as the best efforts of you and your family are laid to waste. I am going to force the Sempiternal Phoenix, wherever it is, to activate. The magic power it will expend in the process will be an unmistakeable beacon that I shall follow to its exact location, and then it will be mine," the man gloated, raising his staff, before slamming the clock hand into the ground with such force that it cut between the cobblestones underfoot and pierced the soil. The weapon glowed with energy, as jagged lines of golden power spread into the ground beneath them.

"Yes! It's working! Awaken, Sempiternal Phoenix! Send yourself one second into the future and show yourself so that your new master may take possession of you!"

Suddenly, the bindings holing Master Feng in place disintegrated as Eternity diverted all of his magic power to his efforts. "No! Stop, _please_! You don't understand what you're doing!" she pleaded, getting to her feet and looking genuinely panicked.

"Silence! I know _exactly_ what I'm doing! This is a power that is rightfully mine, and you have kept it from me for long enough!" Eternity barked.

The lines of power spreading outwards from his staff began to fizzle, and he grinned. "Yes! Any second now! The Sempiternal Phoenix will activate, and then I will know where in these accursed ruins my power resides!"

Suddenly, the ground shook, and a strange sensation overcame everyone present. It was as though every atom in their bodies was suddenly being energised with a strange new kind of magic power. Under their feet, the ground vibrated, and Eternity almost lost his balance. "What?" the man demanded, looking around as, suddenly, the lines of power leapt outwards, splintering and spreading in every direction as far as the eye could see within seconds. Soon, they coated all of their surroundings, spreading across ruins and down streets, and seemingly congregating on the ancient, ruined guild hall of Phoenix's Eye. "What's going on? What's happening?" Eternity demanded, looking around in confusion as the horizon grew a vast bubble of golden energy.

An observer outside the ruined town of Diamauros would have seen a massive bubble of golden magic power spread out of the ground and engulf the town, meeting itself at the very top.

"You idiot! You still don't get it, do you?" Master Feng Chriona challenged, looking around in consternation.

"Get what? What are you talking about?" Eternity demanded, looking around in confusion as reality itself started to blur within the confines of the bubble surrounding Diamauros. "What's happening?"

"The Sempiternal Phoenix isn't hidden _inside_ Diamauros, you fool!" Master Feng raged, looking around in an impassioned mixture of fear and fury. "The Sempiternal Phoenix _is_ Diamauros! The entire town is a massive magic circle!"

 _"What?"_ Eternity demanded in shock.

Sure enough, a bird's-eye view of the town, encased in its golden sphere, revealed that every street, every alley, every inch of the dusty cobblestones mapped an impossibly vast, circular arrangement of runes and symbols, all arranged with the ruined fountain in which Alice had found her key at its very centre.

And then, in an instant, the entire bubble of energy surrounding Diamauros shone with a brilliant, blinding light - and vanished, along with all of its contents.

The only sign that anything had ever been there was a giant crater.

~P's E~

At that exact time, on that exact day, Ariel, who was sitting with Sarah in the guild hall for dinner, suddenly screamed and clutched her head with her hands.

"Ariel? What's wrong?" Sarah asked, immediately concerned for her friend.

"The . . the st **0** rm . . **1** t's gr **0** w **1** ng str **0** nger . ." Ariel moaned, clutching at her head.

Suddenly, whatever had happened to her seemed to end, and she shot bolt upright and looked around. "Something's happened to our guildmates. In Diamauros,"

"What?" Sarah gasped as many of the people around her turned and looked at her in surprise.

"How do you know this?" Russell asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't know, I just . . _know_ ," Ariel lied with a moan to make things seem convincing. They certainly didn't need to know about her sources. "It's too late," she continued, breathing heavily. "They're . . ."

"Yeah?" Her immediate audience was on tenterhooks.

 _"Gone,"_


	66. Lost In Time

Chapter 66: Lost In Time

The sky was gone.

That was the first thing Pierce Blastreyne noticed as soon as whatever magic Master Eternity had cast on him wore off and he could move again. There was no blue sky, no clouds above them. Just infinite, inky blackness.

"What the heck happened?" he wondered as he picked himself up. He looked around at his guildmates - most of whom seemed the worse for wear, but were picking themselves up. With the exceptions of Alice and Sarph - the former was still unconscious after Eternity's attack on Masquerade, and the latter seemed to have temporarily lost all will to live after the destruction of Solamion.

Grace groaned as she sat up. "What the - what happened?" she wondered, looking around.

"I have no idea," her brother shrugged.

"The Sempiternal Phoenix was activated without a destination point in space-time," Master Feng Chriona said as though that explained everything, walking over to them.

"There's that phrase again. 'Sempiternal Phoenix'. What does that mean, master?" Tyria questioned, picking herself up.

"Yeah. Ah'd like an explanation myself," Garrotte agreed, and Fleur, sitting up nearby, gave a firm nod.

The Guild Master looked around, seeing that all of her brats were in agreement, sighed, and nodded. "Alright, everyone gather around. I suppose there's no point in keeping it quiet any more,"

"Ooh, yes. An explanation directly from the horse's mouth, this will be interesting," The Phoenixes looked over to see that Eternity had recovered and was now resolutely trying to pull his staff out of the ground, where it had wedged between cobblestones. "Can I shoot him now?" Kynigós asked, lifting his rifle with a grimace.

"It won't do anything, remember? He stops the bullets in midair," his double pointed out.

"It'll make me feel better," Kynigós groaned. "I only just got to this new world of magic, and now we're somewhere else entirely? That pisses me off, and I wanna take my anger out on _something_ ,"

"Rein it in . . um . ." Boomer, who had climbed out of the Sonic Boom and joined the group, looked between the two Pierces in confusion. "Okay, we need a way to differentiate you two. Pierce and . . . Scary Pierce?" he vaguely remembered Grace's description from a couple of weeks ago. "Metal Arm Pierce?"

The iron fingers in question clenched in anger. "Kynigós. He's Pierce Blastreyne, I'm Pierce Kynigós," the hunter explained.

"Too Greek. I'll just call you Edo-Pierce, okay?" Boomer declared.

"Works for me," Garrotte grinned.

"I still like Scary Pierce more," Hare snorted, "but that's fine," She suddenly bore a small, mischievous grin.

Edo-Pierce looked around, but sighed, seeing he was outvoted. "Fine. Whatever," he groaned.

"Anyway," Master Feng cleared her throat. "For generations, my family, the Chrionas, have been guarding an ancient secret called the Sempiternal Phoenix. We don't really know where it first came from, but I believe that my family, including myself, might actually have been created for the purpose of watching over it,"

Eternity raised an eyebrow. He hadn't pegged that.

"The Sempiternal Phoenix is a fixed point in space and time. In the river of time, it is an unmoving rock that time simply flows around. Furthermore, if anyone were to draw out the temporal energies present in the Sempiternal Phoenix, they can transport it to a place in space and time of their choosing,"

Boomer blinked. "Master, are you saying that this entire village is a _time machine_?"

"Don't be silly, of course not," Master Feng snorted, and most of the people assembled frowned, raised their eyebrows or made other noises of confusion. It sure _sounded_ like a time machine. "A time machine is something that travels forwards and backwards in time while staying in the same place. The Sempiternal Phoenix can move to different places _and_ different times,"

"That really doesn't make much difference, you old crone," Lync muttered.

"It does so," Feng petulantly retorted.

"But none of that explains where we are?" Wesley questioned.

"That's my point exactly. Currently, as far as the world we know and live in goes, we aren't anywhere. Or any _when_ , for that matter," Feng explained, frowning. "And that, is all thanks to _this_ idiot," she added, glaring at Master Eternity.

"Master, what are you saying?" Tyria asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Diamauros, and everyone in it, including ourselves, are currently adrift outside of space and time," she solemnly nodded. " _He_ tried to send out two instructions to the Sempiternal Phoenix; a place in space and time for it to leave, and a beacon for it to know where in space in time for it to return to; one second exactly after the point it left. However, because the Phoenix took him with it when it exited space and time, he was interrupted before he could send the instruction for it to return. Therefore, we are in our current predicament,"

"But . ." Tyria's face paled, and it wasn't hard for Pierce to guess why. Tyria had an entire country depending on her, and this could throw a serious wrench into that plan. "We can go back, right? Back to X785?"

"I hope so. Or thereabouts, anyway," Feng nodded.

The Electrian, who seemed almost on the verge of hyperventilating, began to calm down. "Okay. Okay. Yeah. Everything'll be fine. Right?"

"Exactly," Pierce took her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "We'll sort it out, we'll get back. Don't worry,"

Tyria nodded, staring into his hazel eyes and clutching at his hand for support. "Okay. Okay. I'm good," she nodded.

"Master? What are we gonna do about him?" Boomer asked, looking at Eternity.

"That's a good question," A smile played across the dark wizard's face. "What _are_ you going to do about me? After all, we've established that, even with all of you together, you can't defeat me,"

"You're in the same boat as us, _Lycurgus_ ," Master Feng spat. "We all need to pull together or we're going to be trapped in these ruins for all eternity,"

"Technically, no. We'll all starve to death within weeks. The Garuda's gone, and so are our food supplies," Lync interjected, raising a finger.

The Guild Master cracked a humourless smile. "Good point,"

"Oh, please. I'll find a way off this rock of my own accord," Eternity huffed. "And don't call me by that name, you Chriona bastard," With that, he wheeled on his feet and strode away, cutting an imposing figure in spite of his hunched stature.

Feng took a step forwards. "What happened? Are you really so bitter just because my uncle passed you over?"

Eternity stopped, and there was a moment's silence. "My hatred for you runs deeper than you can possibly understand. You don't get to act like you care now. Not after fifty-six years,"

"And what about Mordonna? Can you justify what you've done to her?" The Phoenix wasn't finished.

"Perhaps not. But I suppose that even Eternity isn't enough to forget the past," the aged man muttered, and continued to walk. "Besides, your brats have probably already done her in,"

"Nope," Pierce shook his head. "I didn't fight anyone who claimed to be Mordonna. Did any of you?" he asked, looking around at his guildmates, all of whom made various signs that they agreed.

Eternity's eyebrow quirked. "Is that so? How interesting. I suppose I should go and find her, then," With that, he continued walking, and said no more.

"Master?" Boomer asked, looking at his Guild Master. "Who is that guy? Do you know him?"

Feng exhaled, and she looked around at the precious members of her guild. "He's just someone that I used to know. But that's not important now. Right now, more than anything, we need to work out a way to drive the Sempiternal Phoenix back into normal space and time," Master Feng explained.

"Well, how do we do that?" Tyria was raring to go. She had to get back . . she had to be there for her country.

"Ah, now that's a problem," Feng frowned thoughtfully. "Honestly? I don't know,"

~P's E~

Mordonna had not gotten lost in the tunnels underground. Even the thought was absurd.

The only reason for which she was doing what she was doing was because she didn't have the time to make her way back to the entrance to the cave.

The ground exploded, and Mordonna, with her leotard made of a tiger's pelt and her normally-prim blue hair coated with dust, emerged from the hole that had been opened between the surface and the tunnel that she had been standing in, landing on the cracked cobblestones of the road in a crouch. "I don't know how Pluto can stand being underground," she muttered, looking around and getting her bearings.

She looked up, frowning, and stared at the black abyss surrounding them. "What the hell happened to the sky?"

When no answer came, the witch sighed and looked around, wondering what to do with the situation. "Hey,"

A ways down the road, there were three wizards. A man and two younger girls. "Phoenixes. How delectable. Whatever's going on, one thing's never going to change. And that's my father's standing orders to kill all Phoenixes,"

~P's E~

Eve twitched, and her eyelids slid open. After that guy had trashed Blanca's car, all three of them had been put down for the count. Which was kinda embarrassing.

But why was she awake now? Looking around, Lorus and Blanca were still out of it. And they were both stronger than her, so why was she . . wait. She sensed Celestial Magic.

Her blue dress rippled around her and her brown hair was tousled by a faint wind as she rose, and her eyes immediately met the cerulean-haired Kairos.

She shivered, but glared at her all the same. "You're one of these Kairos End people, aren't you?"

"Indeed. And you are a little brat who I'm going to enjoy killing," Mordonna snorted, pulling out what Eve immediately recognised as a Celestial Keyring.

Upon which two Crystal Keys, much like her own, twinkled in the dim ambient light.

Shocked, Eve pulled out her own keys and held up that of Venus, looking between it and Mordonna's to ensure that she was seeing what she thought she was seeing.

Unfortunately, this allowed Mordonna to see it too. "So, you have one of the Celestial Deity Keys? Never would have thought," the Celestial Wizard hummed. "Which one is it? Neptune? Saturn?" A strange light suddenly entered her eyes. "It wouldn't happen to be _Jupiter_ , would it?"

"It's Venus, the Celestial Deity of Love," the brunette replied, clenching her fists to put on a show of strength.

Mordonna cocked an eyebrow, and sighed. "Oh. Well, that's disappointing. Venus is widely considered to be the weakest of the Deity Keys, after all. But it'll be nice to add another to my collection. Now, I suppose I should introduce you to my Celestial Deities," She pulled one of the two Crystal Keys, the one whose blue crystal was sculpted to appear like a sword blade, had a faint red tint and was crowned by an ornately carved Greek war helmet, off the ring and held it in her left hand. "Open, Gate of the Battlefield! Mars!"

A doorbell rang, and a blood-red circle of magic energy appeared on the ground. Suddenly, a tanned, Greek-looking man clad entirely in jet-black armour, with a helmet that matched the one on his key, holding a curved black/silver metal shield and with a veritable host of weaponry strapped to his back, emerged, leaping into the air and landing in a crouch in front of his Celestial Wizard. "Celestial Spirit Mars, reporting for duty!" he barked, turning and saluting his master.

"Excellent. Now," Mordonna gripped her second Crystal Key in her other hand, one whose end was sculpted into the shape of a black-tinted, blue crystal bone, and the head forming two hooked outwards protrusions with hollow space between them, almost like the horns of a monster. "Open, Gate of the Graveyard! Pluto!"

Another doorbell rang, and, with a flash of black light, another portal appeared in the ground. From this one, though, instead of a person, a large chair made entirely of bleached, dried bones, with a skull for a headrest and on each armrest, appeared on the ground.

There was a ripple, and a humanoid shadow appeared in the throne, as though there was someone sitting in it who was invisible to the naked eye. A staff made of gold with two protruding horns appeared in midair, and the shadow seemed to grip it, holding it in mid-air.

Eve gasped. Mordonna had just summoned _two_ Celestial Deities. At once. With little visible effort at all. "You . ."

"Well? Are you going to summon your Celestial Deity? It won't be any fun if you don't," the Kairos pouted between her two Spirits.

"O - okay," Eve nervously nodded, gripping her own Keys. "Open, Gate of the Rose! Venus!" She turned the pink-tinted key in midair, and a doorbell rang. With a flash, Venus appeared, resplendent in alluring white silk that left most of her body bare, and cocked her head, sending her pink hair with the roses braided into it rippling. "I am at your service, mistress," Venus bowed, before turning to face their opposition - and her eyes widened.

"Marsiepoo!" Venus squealed, dashing forwards towards the enemy Spirit.

"Ve-Ve?" Mars sounded surprised but excited, and met her in the middle of the road as both Spirits embraced in a hug.

Eve's jaw fell open. "Eh . . uh . . what?"

"Oh, mistress. Right. This is Mars. My boyfriend," Venus shot her a dazzling smile, before a horrified expression overcame her. "Wait - we don't have to fight, do we? I hate fighting with you. Especially since you always win," Venus seemed genuinely upset, and Mars seemed to mirror the sentiment.

"Oh, relax, both of you. And Mars, get back here. I don't actually need you to fight. That can be Pluto's job. You can just stand next to me and look pretty," Mordonna commanded, and, visibly relieved, Mars leapt back to her side. Meanwhile, the shadow in the throne hummed wordlessly.

"Wait," Eve, who had been watching this exchange with mounting dread, suddenly felt a rush of horror. "She only intends to have Pluto fight? I thought she had summoned both of those Spirits for overkill, but if Mars is going to be on the sidelines . . she doesn't have any doubt at all that she's going to win. She's showing off," she whispered in horror.

"You know, mistress, there is one other option," Venus suggested, casting a slightly annoyed look at her wizard.

"What's that?" the Snow wizard asked, and Venus gestured with her chin at Lorus and Blanca. "Oh," she nodded, before frantically crouching over her guildmates and letting Snow magic play over their faces in hopes of waking them up.

"I'll cover you," Venus nodded, bringing her foot down on the ground. Two massive cracks emerged on either side of her, and large plants, covered in thorns, emerged. On each, a rose flower emerged, sharp-looking petals hissing and spitting as though they were angry serpents.

"Cute," Mordonna tched, looking at Pluto. "Get her," The shadow nodded, and his massive chair of bones slid forwards with a grinding, scraping noise like nails on a chalkboard.

Venus watched and waited as the chair inched its way towards her. Eve continued to try to rouse her teammates.

A moment passed. Mordonna tapped her foot impatiently. Pluto continued grinding his way towards Venus.

"Get a move on," he commanded.

Pluto stopped. He turned his shadowy head to his wizard and nodded, faced forwards once more, and started driving forwards again, his speed slightly faster than before.

The Kairos slumped in irritated despair. "I have a useless spirit,"

Finally, Lorus blinked bleary eyelids and came to, registering Eve's face above him. "Forsooth, goodly lady. Why do your eyes betray despair?" he sleepily muttered.

"We're being attacked," Eve hurriedly told him.

"Indeed? Well then. I suppose that the hero shall simply have to . . what happened to the sky?" Lorus blinked, trailing off.

"It's a good question, isn't it?" Mordonna loudly voiced her agreement across the battlefield as Pluto continued to inch towards them.

Lotus picked himself up and checked himself over. "The hero does believe himself to be fine, for the time being at any rate. Would it be correct to presume those three to be his foes?"

"Uh, yeah," Eve confirmed.

"Excellent. For there is no fiend nor brigand, no matter how great or small, that could possibly withstand the might of -"

"Mars, I'm bored. Take him out," Mordonna commanded, and her Spirit nodded. "Of course, mistress," He sprung forwards with incredible speed, bringing a halberd that he had unslung from his back down on Lorus' head - only for it to meet a crystalline shield before it could make contact.

"This hero has the power to crystallise and control light!" Lotus barked, sending the shield of solidified blue light flying away and dispatching the Spirit with it.

Ares picked himself up from where he landed - and gasped as the entire world went black. The cloaked wizard smirked, using his photokinesis to block light from Mars' eyes and sound from his ears. "How will you fight, deaf and blind?" he challenged, holding his hand out with fingers splayed to maintain the spell.

"Mars?!" Mordonna gasped, looking with concern at her spirit.

"What's going - huh?" the soldier spirit tried to talk, but was surprised when he couldn't hear his own voice.

"Don't even bother. Your minion no longer hears your orders," Lorus mocked.

The leotard-clad Celestial Wizard frowned, and a thought came to her. "Mars! Leave us!" she commanded, twisting her key once more, and the Celestial Spirit vanished.

Lorus frowned and cocked an eyebrow.

"Now, open! Gate of the Battlefield! Mars!" Mordonna invoked again, and Lorus blinked. "Our foe has enough magic energy to burn that she can dismiss and re-summon her Spirit?" he demanded incredulously, before realising that he should be preparing for the impending attack, and looking around.

The doorbell rang from above him, and, a second too late, the four cerulean spikes of Lorus' hair were swept backwards as he realised that the warrior had been summoned above him. Mars, falling from above, forced his large, curved shield down on the Phoenix, crushing him into the ground.

Lorus groaned as Mars stood on top of the shield weighing him down, and stamped on it. "Give it up," the Spirit growled. "My master has commanded that you be defeated, so I will be remorseless in my assault. So surrender, and I won't have to kill you,"

The illusionist tched. "What do you take the hero for? Some weak-willed side character? He shan't stand for an insult like that!"

Eve gulped. She knew who he was talking about.

In response, Mars stamped on his squashed head again. He choked, coming up blood.

Eve watched this in concern. "Mistress? If you wish, I can intervene," Venus trepidantly offered, but her wizard shook her head. "No. I won't ask you to hurt your boyfriend," she declared, casting a glance at Blanca, who was still out cold. "Just keep an eye on Pluto," Venus nodded.

"What are you gonna do? Wake up your other friend?" Mordonna huffed.

The brunette clenched her fists. "No . . I don't need her. I don't need anyone else to help me! I'm a Phoenix's Eye wizard. And I . ." Her parents' faces flashed in her mind; the people she had left because she couldn't bear to be a burden in them. "I'm strong on my own!" she declared, running forwards with her arms outstretched and throwing herself at Mars. The full-body tackle knocked the Spirit straight off Lorus and sent them both tumbling to the ground.

Lorus knew an opportunity when he saw one; with a flourish he picked himself up and flung the shield away, spinning to face his foe.

"You have to die now," Mars growled, pulling a gladius from his back in his left hand with little visible effort, in spite of the awkward position he was in and the way his right arm was pinned under Eve's body. The witch in question opened her eyes and gasped, seeing the wicked sharp edge coming towards her and screwed her eyes shut tight, knowing that her reckless act of heroism might have just gotten her killed -

A razor-sharp blade of crystal cut through Mars' raised arm, sending the severed limb flying end over end into the air, still clutching the sword. Eve squealed and pulled herself away as Mars eyed the bloodied stump of his arm in irritation.

"Mars!" Mordonna gasped in horror as her spirit picked himself up while his severed limb vanished in a flurry of light. "Do not be concerned, ma'am. This is not the first time I've lost a limb . . you ought to be aware by now that all my injuries are repaired when I return to my world," the soldier sighed.

"Even so. Pluto! Forget that other Deity for now and focus on the Light wizard!" Mordonna commanded.

Pluto stopped. He turned his shadowy head to his wizard and nodded, faced forwards once more, and, with a grinding noise, swivelled his bony chair until it faced Lorus. The other people involved in the fight watched in faint bemusement as Pluto resumed inching his way towards his new target.

"The hero shall certainly deal with this threat . . . _tomorrow_ ," Lorus huffed, a smile playing across his elegantly sculpted features.

"You still have to deal with me!" Mars shouted, now wielding a battleaxe in his remaining hand. A chunk of crystal suddenly encased the weapon as Lorus reached out and mimed grasping ring of him, before swinging his arm up, and the axe was levitated into the air, dragging its owner with it. The soldier Spirit had the presence of mind to let go, dropping to the ground without issue as the battleaxe flew away under Lorus' guidance.

"Mars!" Mordonna gasped, seeing the axe come flying towards her, seemingly intent on cleaning her in two. "Close, Gate of the Battlefield!" Mars suddenly vanished, and so did his axe and shield.

Lorus keep this guard up, noticing that Mordonna seemed to be starting to tire. Evidently the constant opening and closing of the gates was taking its toll on her. Eve, who had also spotted this, smiled. So their enemy had limits after all.

Venus was hovering around Eve, who still refused to force her to fight Mars, and keeping an eye on Pluto.

"Open!" the Kairos panted, sweat breaking out on her forehead. "Gate of the Battlefield! Mars!" The doorbell rang, and Mars emerged directly behind Lorus, already with his gladius levelled at the illusionist's throat.

But the Spirit passed harmlessly through the man as though he were a ghost. Mars skidded to a halt, looking at his enemy in confusion - until what was obviously an illusion vanished in a flicker of light.

"The hero still recalls some of his old villainous tricks! Such as misdirection!" Lorus' voice seemed to echo all around them. In an instant, there were suddenly ten copies of Lorus in a circle around Mars, and the soldier levelled his sword at the ones in front of him as he looked around. "Show yourself, coward," he challenged.

"A tempting thought," all the Lorus-es hummed. "Alright. But first I'd like to return a favour," At once, all ten vanished, and Mars gasped. "They were all fakes?" Mordonna demanded.

And then the real Lorus came crashing down from above with a massive slab of crystallised light beneath his feet, crushing Mars into the ground just as the Deity had shield bashed him earlier.

Mordonna gasped. "No! Mars!"

"Sorry, mistress," the soldier moaned. "We underestimated these Phoenixes,"

"I suppose so," the Kairos frowned, before taking a quick glance around and smiling. "It's alright, Mars, you can go. I have this covered,"

"Yes ma'am!" he nodded, and vanished.

Lorus, Eve and Venus all eyed Mordonna suspiciously. "What would the villainess mean by that?" the eccentric man hummed.

"Now, Pluto!" she suddenly shouted, and all three span to face the other Deity, who had gotten surprisingly close while they waited. "Horn of Plenty!" Mordonna commanded.

Bones flew out of the ground, curving and forming a massive horn which floated in the air before Pluto. Venus gasped, shocked that she had let her guard down, and the two snake-like roses under her control lashed forwards, but already the shadow had dropped its golden rod and was taking the horn in both hands, pulling it towards his lips and preparing to blow -

"ENOUGH!" With a flash of light, Pluto and Venus both suddenly vanished, their Gates forcibly closed, and all three wizards turned in surprise to see Eternity emerging from a side street, staff in hand. "Father?" Mordonna gasped.

"Come, Mordonna. This is not the time to fight," the Kairos End guild master declared, his dark cloak billowing, and, obediently, his last remaining servant rushed to his side.

"Father?" Lorus parroted in confusion.

"Phoenixes. Be glad for your reprieve. The situation has changed, and you three ought to regroup with your guildmates. I believe they were in the town square. You all ought to be happy that I have decided keeping you all alive is more conducive to my cause for the time being," he declared, before turning and walking away. Mordonna hastily followed him.

"That was strange," Lorus frowned, waiting for a moment to ensure that this wasn't some kind of trick.

"Yeah . . do you think he was telling the truth?" Eve asked.

"Perhaps. The hero and his accomplices ought to investigate, if nothing else," Lorus shrugged, creating a floating platform of crystal blue light and heaving the still-unconscious Blanca onto it. "Come, my friend. We shall forge onwards and rejoin our peers,"

~P's E~

Meanwhile, the Phoenixes had settled down, and Pierce, seeing that Sarph was yet to respond to anything, wandered over to him. "Hey, Sarph? You alright?"

The golden knight stared forlornly at the shattered hilt of Solamion. "Pierce?" he finally questioned.

"Yeah, buddy. It's me," the Tamer gently told him.

"I shouldn't be upset," the collapsed man sighed. "It's just a sword, after all,"

"Naah. That sword was important to you. You'd be a sociopath if you weren't upset," Pierce assured him, sitting next to him. "Still, you might have to hold off on your grief. We are in a bit of a situation here," he pointed out.

"Oh? How's that?" Sarph asked, and Pierce gestured up at the featureless black void around them.

He looked up, and his eyes widened. "What on earth happened to the sky?"

"Were you seriously not paying attention to anything Master was saying just a few minutes ago?" the boy demanded.

In response, Sarph raised both an eyebrow and the broken remnants of the Spell-Shattering Sigil Solamion.

"Oh. Right," Pierce nodded. "You should talk to Master. You'll probably be fascinated," he offered.

"I suppose a distraction would be nice," the knight admitted, picking himself up and wandering over to the Guild Master, who looked lost in thought. No doubt reflecting on how to escape their predicament.

"Pierce?" He looked over to see Grace walking up to him and sitting nearby. "Yeah, sis?" he asked as the young Dragon Slayer sat next to him.

"It's gonna be okay, right? We'll get home?" she questioned.

"Of course we will. Master will figure it out, you'll see," Pierce reassured her. "Has she ever let us down before?"

"I guess not . . . okay!" Grace grinned, brightening.

"We just gotta wait for the people who know about this stuff to figure it out, okay?" he assured her. "And then we'll be fine,"

"Great!" she beamed, settling next to him.

There was a moment of silence, and Pierce looked around at his guildmates. Artorias had been fetched from the hiding place, and Lync was chatting to him while hovering protectively over Alice, who was still unconscious. All things considered, Alice was probably their best bet for escape. If she and Master put their heads together, no way they wouldn't be able to figure out how to get back to time and space. They just needed to wait until she woke up.

Also, Pierce really needed to get the story from her about the whole 'Masquerade' thing.

And then, as everyone leapt up in shock at the unexpected noise, an _earthshaking_ roar echoed through the town.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **For anyone who still doesn't really understand what the Sempiternal Phoenix is or how it works, it's basically a TARDIS. Except it's an entire town. And it's a lot harder to drive . . . . Hey, I should have an appearance from Doctor Who in the story at some point. That would be great. :) I wonder if it should be the twelfth or the thirteenth?**

 **Also, one more thing I think I should clarify; the Caladrius' feathers. And why Eve didn't do anything with them in this situation. There's a simple reason for that;** ** _the feathers were a retcon_** **, inadvertently suggested by a reviewer around when I was writing Chapter 72. I hadn't originally planned for them to be a thing, and I had already written this chapter before I thought of the Caladrius giving Eve three of her feathers. It might be a bit of a plot hole, I know, but I really don't want to redo the whole fight when the power of the feathers wouldn't have helped her in this situation anyway. Which is a sentence that will make more sense when she first uses one and their effects are revealed.**

 **Point is, as far as I'm concerned, Eve was so panicked and scared for her life that she forgot about the feathers.**


	67. The Earth Dragon, Equivaton!

Chapter 67: The Earth Dragon, Equivaton!

 ** _Previously, on The Guild Next Door . . ._**

 _And then, as everyone leapt up in shock at the unexpected noise, an_ earthshaking _roar echoed through the town._

 _~P's E~_

Above them, a massive shape loomed out of the darkness from the edge of the town like some warped sunrise. Every Phoenix in the square looked up at the roaring beast, so huge that a single one of its claws was the same size as any one of them (except Sarph as he was twice the size of everyone else).

Pierce's eyes widened as he beheld the gigantic winged creature that was flapping its way out of the darkness towards them. "Oh man. Is that . . a . ."

"No. It can't be," Tyria shook her head.

Edo-Pierce's mouth fell open in a shocked smile, and he looked on the verge of hysteria. "Holy crap, how freaking lucky am I?!"

"I don't believe it," Master Feng shook her head. "This doesn't make any sense. What the heck is that and why is it here?"

"You guys are all seeing the same thing I am, aren't you?" Boomer asked, looking around to make sure they weren't all having some kind of shared hallucination, and Lync nodded. "Yeah. That is definitely a -"

"Dragon!" Grace shouted in excitement, grinning like mad as the massive beast landed in the ruins on the edge of the town square, crushing buildings underfoot like toys.

The dragon was so vast that it could have picked up Pierce's house back in Magnolia in one claw. He was built with bulging muscles and coated in scales that were mostly earth brown, but dark tan in the underside with several sand green streaks running across his body. An impressive crown of six silver horns crowned his dinosaur-like head, a long, muscular tail with sharpened spikes running all the way from his neck to the tip of his tail, and serrated silver claws adorned each of his digits on his four claws. Thick, leathery wings crusted over with what almost looked like solid rock were folded on his back, the joints adorned with spikes.

"Well! Look what I've found!" the dragon boomed, seeming to salivate at the sight of the humans. "It's been so long since I've eaten!"

"Eaten?" Grace squeaked, jumping into a rift. Pierce watched her go, and gulped. "Grace!"

The dragon twitched as Grace landed on his snout, between his eyes. "Hey! We're not food, we're people!" she shouted as the dragon almost went cross-eyed looking at her.

"Food with attitude. I wonder if that makes it spicier?" the dragon muttered, before sniffing. "Wait. You're one of those humans with dragon magic. Dragon Slayer, right?"

"Yeah! I'm Grace, the Reality Dragon Slayer! And I won't let you eat me or my friends!" Grace shouted, as reality began to distort around her hands.

With a casual flick of his snout, the dragon tossed her into the air. Grace caught herself with a rift and landed in the ground, glaring up at the dragon as he crouched, staring with baleful red eyes at her and doing his best to get on her level - not that it worked, but the effort was appreciated.

"This is bad. Even if we weren't all still exhausted from fighting Kairos End, we couldn't take on a real live dragon," Master Feng shook her head.

"Why is a dragon here in the out-of-time anyway, old hag?" Lync demanded.

"How should I know, you little brat? This has never happened before!" Feng retorted.

"Calm yourself, little one. Your scent betrays your nature, no matter your form, and I will respect you as a fellow dragon. Which, I suppose, means that all these humans are under your protection," the dragon sighed, sounding disappointed.

"Uh, you'll think of me . . as another dragon?" Grace repeated, looking uncertain about this turn of events.

"Would you rather I think of you as an appetiser, hatchling?" the dragon questioned, sounding stern.

"Nope, dragon is good!" she nodded.

"Well, I suppose my grumbling stomach will have to wait a little longer," the dragon moaned, lying down on his stomach. "Grace, you said? My name is Equivaton, the Earth Dragon,"

"Uh, it's nice to meet you," Grace nodded, smiling. Equitation also bared his fangs in an approximation of a smile.

"So, you humans are clever clogs. I don't suppose any of you know what's going on here?" Equivaton questioned, looking around at the assembled humans.

"Know what's -" Master Feng strode forwards, looking up at the dragon. "How exactly is it that you came to be here?"

The Earth Dragon twitched his wings as though he was shrugging. "I don't know. Some human hit me with a weird spell and suddenly I was here in this void,"

Master Feng pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Strange. An attack that banishes its target to the void outside of time and space? I wonder who could be so powerful as to cast such a spell?" she mused.

"How long have you been here?" Tyria questioned.

"I couldn't tell you. There seems to be no way to mark the passage of time in this place. But if my stomach is anything to judge by, it's been about a day since my arrival," Equivaton guessed.

"Well, we are going to get out of here and back to the real world!" Tyria shouted. "So if you want to help, we might be able to take you with us! Right, Master?"

"Really?" A smile seemed to be tugging at the dragon's lips. "Is this true?"

Master Feng looked thoughtful, and nodded after a second. "Yes . . maybe, with the magic of a dragon to help us, we might just be able to force our way back into the river of time. I'll still need to talk with Alice and work out a way to reactivate the Sempiternal Phoenix, but yes, this might just work,"

"Alright," Equivaton shrugged again. "Also, do you know what the big white thing underneath us is?"

"Big . . white thing?" Boomer questioned.

"I think we should all go to the edge of town and see for ourselves," Master Feng declared, striding towards a street that was only partially blocked by Equivaton's left foreleg.

~P's E~

"Okay. What the _hell_ is that?" Pierce Kynigós questioned.

The edge of town was marked by a sheer cliff that tapered away beneath them and spilled into an infinite abyss of darkness. Looking to the left and right, the entire town of Diamauros was encircled by the cliff. It was as though it had been torn out of the earth and transformed into a floating island.

Interestingly, though, there seemed to be what looked like a white river made of energy snaking through the void far beneath them, zigzagging around in random directions and stretching out into Infinity in both directions as far as the eye could see. Also, small, blurry objects seemed to be hovering around the river.

"What's that, he asked?" Wesley questioned.

"I'm not completely sure . . but I think it might be _time_ ," Master Feng guessed. "It's the river of time, flowing through eternity. Maybe, if we can get to it, by physically reinserting Diamauros and everyone in it back into space and time, we'll be able to rejoin the time stream,"

"So we have a plan now?" Tyria eagerly asked.

"Yes, I'd say we do," Master Feng nodded.

"There is a small problem," a thunderous growl echoed behind them, and the wizards all turned and gasped, seeing that Equivaton had swivelled and his massive jaws wee now to their back.

"I tried getting close to that 'river', as you call it," the Earth Dragon explained, growling through his teeth. "It was the only thing around, after all, so of course I went to take a look,"

"What did you find?" Master Feng questioned.

"I couldn't get close," Equivaton shook his massive head, knocking a couple of scrappy buildings into rubble as he did. "There's an entire army of strange creatures with lots of tentacles swarming around it. They attacked me,"

"They're strong enough to fight a dragon?" Grace gasped.

"No, not individually, at least. If there was just one or two, or even one or two hundred, I'm sure I could handle it. But there were thousands. Maybe _millions_. And they all swarmed me and bit me," A strange expression was coming over the dragon's face, and Pierce couldn't tell if Equivaton was angry, or _frightened_. Perhaps a mixture of both.

The mighty dragon heaved a great sigh. "I've never _feared_ ," he spat the word like an insult, "the things that are smaller than me. Not before now, at any rate. But those monsters . . ." A shiver ran through him, and his jaw clenched. "I don't know what to say," he finally growled.

"Well, if they're all that weak, then we shouldn't have a problem fighting them off, right?" Sarph asked.

"Idiot. Just because a dragon thinks of them as weak, doesn't mean we'll see them in the same way, dumbass," Hare huffed, glaring at him.

"That's true. Dragons and humans are a whole order of magnitude apart in terms of strength. These things could be incredibly powerful," Master Feng mused. "But that doesn't matter. If we're going to get home, we'll have to fight them,"

"We should regroup in the main square," Pierce decided. "We need to make sure Alice and Artorias are alright and meet up with Eve, Blanca and Lorus. Then Master and Alice can put their heads together and come up with a plan," he declared. "Let's go!"

~P's E~

The Phoenixes, and their new dragon ally, returned to the plaza to find that the missing three had arrived in their absence, and that Clockwork had gone missing.

"Missing? That's odd," Master Feng mused.

"He's part of Kairos End. He probably went to rejoin that Eternity guy," Tyria frowned. Fleur nodded, seeming impatient.

"So, we have three enemies with us in Diamauros. What should we do about that?" Sarph asked.

Their Guild Master huffed. "If they had any sense in their heads they'd realise that we're trying to get us all home and help us,"

"They're dark wizards. Being insane comes with the job," Boomer pointed out, folding his arms from where he was sitting on his boombox.

"If only Sensho were here, he could wake up Alice in no time," Pierce muttered, looking at the unconscious Brawler.

"Speaking of which, what exactly is the story with Alice and that Masquerade person?" Pierce asked, looking at Lync.

"Yes, I'd quite like to know that myself," Sarph agreed, raising his blond eyebrows.

The Vestal sighed. "Well, I don't know the whole story, since I only met her afterwards, but from what I heard, it happened like this. When she was younger, maybe six years ago or so, Alice used to work as an assistant to her grandfather,"

"Yeah. So?" Tyria asked, folding her arms. She in particular was upset about this turn of events. Everyone else had only known Alice and Lync for just a bit over a month, but they'd been friends of hers for years. They'd been part of a team together for several months before the war. Why hadn't they told _her_?

"Dr. Gehabich's field of expertise is theoretical physics. Teleportation, interdimensional travel, stuff like that. Point is, one of his experiments went wrong. His lab, and both himself and Alice, were flooded with negative energy, which sort of, I dunno, created alter egos. Corrupted versions of them. Like Jekyll and Hyde. Alice's was Masquerade," Lync explained. "He was evil for a while, but eventually he reformed. Nowadays, he likes to think of himself as Alice's guardian angel, if you know what I mean,"

"Wow," Pierce blinked.

"You could have told me," Tyria sulked.

"Fascinating," Sarph smiled, looking at Alice with new interest.

~P's E~

However, while the Phoenixes of Earth Land were making plans, Pierce Kynigós was otherwise occupied, having found himself unable to tear his eyes from the massive, imposing beast before him. He was practically salivating at the thought of hunting such a mighty creature.

"Oi. Flesh bag," Equivaton growled, glaring with baleful red eyes at Kynigós. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Somewhat startled at being noticed, Kynigós rapidly recovered and grinned, clenching the fingers of his prosthetic metal arm. "I'm gonna kill you," he declared. "When we get out of this, I'm gonna put a bullet in your throat and take your head as a trophy," He paused, his smile suddenly faltering as he realised something he should have thought of before.

 _Where was he going to put it?_ He'd need one hell of a mantelpiece to support this dragon's massive skull.

Equivaton snorted in amusement, turning his head and glaring down his snout at the hunter. "Are you, now? That will be amusing indeed," he rumbled. "I'll certainly enjoy seeing you try,"

Kynigós jaw set, and he glared at the Earth Dragon. "I mean it. I'm Deadeye Pierce Kynigós, the greatest hunter in Edolas, and I've hunted creatures like you in my dreams. It'd be a pretty damn big waste if I let a chance like this go. So I won't," he bared his teeth in a grin.

"I don't believe you," Equivaton looked down at him. "Anyone can call themselves a hunter, but only the truly mighty can really live up to the title, and I just don't believe that a little human like you could ever -" He paused, noticing that Kynigós had taken off his pack full of hunter's gear and was sorting through it. "What are you doing?"

"This," Kynigós grinned a feral grin at the dragon as he hoisted something from his bag and lifted it up for the dragon to see. "In my homeland, there was a monster. She took everything from me, and I never forgave her. So I hunted her, and when I got my hands on her, I took my revenge, and this is my trophy. What do you have to say about this?" he questioned, holding up the scarred, bruised, stained with dried blood, head of Erza Knightwalker.

Equivaton regarded the grisly trophy thoughtfully. "That," he slowly commented, baring his teeth in a savage smile, "is something I hadn't thought a weakling human capable of,"

"I'm not just a human, you great big chunk of ivory," Kynigós retorted. "I told you. I'm the greatest hunter in Edolas. And when I get back to Earth Land, I'm gonna claim that place's title as well,"

"You know, now that I think about it, you look somewhat familiar," Equivaton mused. "Yes. Shortly before I ended up here, I saw a human who looked quite like you, and, as humans go, he was most interesting indeed . . hmmm," the dragon hummed thoughtfully.

"Quit being all melancholy," Kynigós huffed, irritably kicking Equivaton's claw, the only part of him he could reach. "Hunting you won't be any fun if you won't give it your all,"

The dragon's jaw opened wide, and he laughed, a booming sound that echoed through all of Diamauros. "I certainly do look forward to seeing you try, fleshbag,"

~P's E~

Finally, Alice stirred and woke. "Morning," she sleepily muttered, spotting Lync hovering over her. "You shouldn't really be in my bedroom, Lync, we've talked about this,"

"Alice. We're not in your bedroom. There's a bit of a situation," her boyfriend explained as she sat up and sleepily looked around. "Huh?"

As soon as she registered that, rather than her bedroom in the Nest, she was lying on a dirty road in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by her guildmates, Alice shot upright - and then it all started flooding back. "Oh no! Hydranoid!" she suddenly gasped, fishing in her pockets and bringing out the Darius Bakugan.

"Hydranoid?" Lync asked, eyeing the little ball in concern.

"He got shot," Alice explained.

"So? His scales are literally made of metal," the Vestal shrugged.

"In ball form," she added.

Lync blinked and gulped. "Oh no," He knew that Bakugan in ball form were vulnerable. "Is he . ."

"I'm . . fine," the ball weakly growled, and Alice's lips split into a smile. "I'm so relieved,"

"What happened . . to the sky?" his higher-pitched voice questioned as the ball swivelled in his partner's hand.

At the question, Alice looked up, and blinked. "Huh. I didn't think it would be night already. And what happened to the stars?"

"Master, I think you should explain things to her," Artorias, shakily standing up, suggested.

 _~P's Unnecessary Anime Recap - E~_

"I see," Alice thoughtfully considered Master Feng's explanation of their current situation. "That's an interesting conundrum, to be sure," she muttered, eyes downcast, before a sudden thought struck her. "Where's the core of this Sempiternal Phoenix?"

"The . . core?" Master Feng replied in surprise, raising her eyebrows.

"There has to be some kind of . . central router, I suppose. A master control unit that governs the functions of the Sempiternal Phoenix. The 'brain', so to speak," the Brawler clarified.

"Ah. Well, the Sempiternal Phoenix doesn't quite work like that," the elder Phoenix replied with a helpless shrug.

The orangette frowned, tilting her head. "But it has to. There has to be some kind of control system, something that I can patch into. Anything?" she questioned in disbelief.

"You want to see the control network of the Sempiternal Phoenix?" Master Feng raised her eyebrows beneath her bushy grey hair. Suddenly, she dropped to the ground and carefully prised a stone out of the cobbled ground beneath them.

Alice watched in curiosity.

Eventually the rock came loose, and, tossing it aside, the guild master scooped up a clod of dirt, adorned with tiny twinkling specks of dust and a couple of decayed, old roots. "Here it is," she explained, holding up the chunk of earth for Alice to see.

Wrinkling her nose, she carefully brushed her hair out of the way and inspected it. "It's . . dirt?" she shrugged.

"Look closer," Feng encouraged.

Obediently, Alice squinted, bringing the dirt into greater focus - and, suddenly, she saw it. What her Guild Master had been referring to. The tiny twinkles within the dirt, which she had taken for dust and grit? They were actually incredibly miniscule fragments of crystal. She gasped, before looking back up at Feng in amazement. "You mean . . ?"

"Yes," she nodded in response.

"But . . the entire town?" she questioned, disbelieving.

"And every structure in or underneath it," Feng confirmed.

"That's _incredible_. Who built this? Because they must have been one of the greatest magical engineers of all time," Alice declared, a smile growing on her face.

Lync coughed, interrupting the two women. "Ahem, Alice, baby? We aren't all geniuses who can find the meaning of life in a speck of dirt. Mind, y'now, dumbing it down for the rest of us?"

"It's not just dirt. The entire landmass this town is built on has been permeated with tiny lacrima fragments. It's an entire self-organising cerebral structure! There might even have been a time when it was self-aware! The sheer _dedication_ this must have taken to engineer," Alice shook her head in bemusement.

"Uh, what does this have to do with cornflakes?" Grace asked.

The Amaterasu witch blinked, looking at her oddly. "Cornflakes?"

"You said it was a cereal structure. Cereal is cornflakes," the young Dragon Slayer nodded, sounding completely sure of herself.

"Oh - no no no. It's a _cerebral_ structure," Alice repeated herself, emphasising the 'b'. "It means a brain. The Sempiternal Phoenix is a giant brain. There is no central core, because the _entire landmass_ is the core," she clarified.

"Oh, um . . so we're standing on a giant brain," Grace nodded. "Okay,"

"But still, this could work," With a wave of her hand, a purple screen appeared in front of Alice, and she carefully returned the dirt to the ground. "Yeah. This could work," she resolved. "Between me and Sarph, our Archive and Amaterasu Code should be able to hack into the Sempiternal Phoenix and recode it so that it will be able to insert itself back into the time stream, kind of like . . an incarnating radius. Everyone else needs to find anything they can and make ropes, thick and strong ones," she commanded.

"Why?" Boomer questioned.

"Because we can rewire as much as we want, but we'll still need Equivaton to physically drag us back into time," Alice clarified.

"Ah think Astro used rope in some of the traps he put in the catacombs," Garrotte offered.

"What are you all waiting for? Go," the orangette encouraged.

"Right!" With that, everyone sped off

, leaving Alice, Sarph, and Master Feng standing in the centre of the court.

"Master, be honest. Do you think this could work?" Alice questioned, looking at their guild master.

"I don't know. But it's our only shot," Feng shrugged.

A/N

A/N

Here we go. Only one more chapter, OT/CT5, and the epilogue, and then the first part of the main Phoenix's Eye story will be complete!

Also, yay for a new character! Equivaton, the Earth Dragon! I assure you that everything about how and why he came to be part of the story will be explained. Eventually. For now, just think of him as the time-travelling Phoenix's Eye counterpart to Atlas Flame.


	68. An Incarnating Radius

Chapter 68: An Incarnating Radius

 ** _Previously, on The Guild Next Door . . ._**

 _"And while Volt was still killed at Hydron's hand, Lync also survived, joining the Resistance for a short while before going to live with retired Battle Brawler Alice and her grandfather,"_

 _"So, that's that! See you later, on Doctor Kit's Documentaries!"_

 _~P's E~_

 _"No puny mortal can best Goliath! I am invincible!" Goliath crowed, glaring down at the five wizards. "Now, who would like to die first?" he leered._

 _Suddenly, there was a loud crack, punctuated by a shout; "Reality Dragon's Roar!" The five looked over in surprise as Grace emerged from a patch of bent space and unleashed a blast of grey energy that smashed into Goliath's neck. "What are you waiting for? Attack!" she commanded._

 _~P's E~_

 _"Y'now, it's weird. I actually can't remember anything of that fight," Grace frowned, scratching her head._

 _~P's E~_

 _Totomaru, who had managed to get himself near the main entrance (to the Electrian Grand Headquarters) while fighting off a trio of (Alvarez) soldiers, paused after defeating them, hearing a clatter of approaching men that sounded like it was coming from within the main entrance. He braced himself and flattened himself against the the main entrance, waiting to ambush the oncoming reinforcements as a flash of light shone from within the hall._

 _And kept waiting._

 _And waited some more._

 _Finally, he realised something had happened, and peered into the corridor. Nothing. It was empty. "Strange," he frowned, rejoining the fight._

 _~P's E~_

Pierce pulled a length of rope out of a trap in the catacombs, untying it from the lever it had been attached to. "Hopefully this will help," he muttered.

"Couldn't hurt, he admitted," Wesley offered, using his Ball magic to smash open the rock that hid the obstacles.

He blinked, spotting something hidden behind the trap. "Hey . . what's this, he wondered, before shouting, Pierce, come and take a look at this!"

Pierce was there in a moment, looking inside.

What was revealed was a small, domed chamber, carved from the rock itself, with the only sign of human habitation being intricate patterns of crude tiles attached to the floor. However, the room was dominated by a perfect cube of what looked like bedrock, into which was carved a series of letters from a language Pierce didn't recognise.

"I suppose you don't know what that means, either, he sighed, not really expecting an answer," Wesley questioned.

"Nope. Maybe we should get Sarph or Alice down here to take a look?" Pierce suggested. "Ugh, but we don't have time. We have to get back . . _to time_ ,"

"Later, then," Wesley sighed.

~P's E~

"You're completely certain this is necessary?" Equivaton irritably growled as an improvised harness, made by cannibalising several of Astro's lingering traps from the S-Class Trials, was fitted by Tyria and Lync around his legs and tail.

Tyria surreptitiously removed the tangle of copper wiring she'd been snacking on from her mouth and hollered up at the Earth Dragon; "Sorry, but we don't have much to work with! We kind of just have to make do with what we've got!"

Equivaton huffed, but relaxed and did his best to comply. "If you say so, flesh - wait," he rumbled, sniffing. "Odd . . you don't smell like other humans I've met,"

Tyria's face went white, and she frantically glanced around to make sure that no one had heard. Luckily, Lync and Raya (who was helping them by using her flaming breath as a welding torch) were the only people in the vicinity, and he was distracted. "Oh, it's probably just my tech magic. Metal and stuff, you know," she did her best to brush it off.

"No, that isn't it," Equivaton immediately shot her down. "But I can't quite put my finger on what it actually is. It's kind of dragon-y, but different too,"

An odd sensation suddenly overcame the Electrian at that moment; a sense of power, sheer and unadulterated. How dare this creature defy her? "QUIT TALKING AND GET BACK TO WORK, YOU GREAT BIG LIZARD!" she shrieked, her teeth briefly morphing into pointed white triangles.

Equivaton was equally shocked and angered at this outburst. Who did this puny fleshbag think she was, to command a being such as him? But, as he was on the verge of twisting around and eating the little human, consequences be damned, he became aware of an odd energy, of sorts, emanating from her. An energy that seemed to promise dire reprisal, that there was something about this human fundamentally different from others of her kind, and that, were any harm to come to her, there would be serious consequences.

Equivaton had a feeling that that might disagree with his stomach, so he decided to, just this once, let the unreasonable human win the argument. So he sat back down and let her continue fixing chains around his legs.

~P's E~

"Sarph, how's it coming?" Alice questioned. She was alone, as Hydranoid had gone to gather materials with the others, but was linked to Sarph and Master Feng telepathically, so that they could coordinate their efforts to rework the Sempiternal Phoenix

"Fine, I suppose," There was an audible note of depression in Sarph's tone, and Alice grimaced, registering it. Losing Solamion had hit their knight hard. He was trying to bury himself in his work while it sunk in, she could tell, but that would only work for so long.

"I've finished retorting the control network in the northern section," Feng commented. "How are the east and west parts coming?"

"Alright, I suppose," Alice muttered, holding her arms out and spinning a quartet of Amaterasu Seals across the ground. Underneath, the cerebral structure that governed the workings of the Sempiternal Phoenix reorganised itself in accordance with the new instructions she was feeding it. "I just . . don't like this, if you take my meaning?"

"I agree," Sarph rumbled, using his Archive to execute a similar directive. "This Sempiternal Phoenix is an ingenious device. It should be in a museum. I appreciate that we have to do this, or we'll all die, but even so . ." he sighed.

"Yes. I too feel like we're desecrating something sacred," Alice agreed.

"That's not so far from the truth, you know," Master Feng pointed out. "My family has been guardians of the Sempiternal Phoenix for more than two hundred years. Calling it sacred is hardly an exaggeration, at least to us,"

"You're not helping," the Brawler muttered.

"Look, we can quibble about stuff like that later. Everyone, finish their sections. Then we'll meet in the middle of town and work our way southwards. Like that, we should cover the entire town," Sarph explained.

"Right," Alice nodded.

As her Soulfire flames swept over the ground of the northern section of town, Master Feng wiped a tear from her eye. "My brats are growing up. I'm so proud,"

~P's E~

Eternity, Clockwork, and Mordonna were holed up in a mostly-intact building not far from the town square, watching the Phoenixes go about their business.

"Father?" Mordonna asked.

"What is it, Mordonna?" Eternity asked.

"Should we be helping them?"

"No. After what Phoenix's Eye did to us, we owe them nothing," Eternity snorted.

"But, father. I heard them talking. We're all going to die if we can't get Diamauros back into space and time," Mordonna reasoned.

 _"So what?"_ Eternity snapped. "My life's work . . the quest for power that I devoted fifty-six years to . . it's all been laid to waste by trickery on the part of Chriona bastards. Kairos End's been annihilated and the Sempiternal Phoenix has banished us all to the void outside of time. So now I don't care anymore if I die, as long as I take that bitch with me!"

"But . . Father," Mordonna gazed at him. "What about me? Don't _I_ mean anything to you?"

Eternity drew breath, but paused, staring back at her.

"Maybe you're willing to throw your own life away for your revenge. But what about mine?" the Celestial Wizard asked.

The elderly man had no words for her, looking to be wresting with something in his mind.

"Clockwork, back me up here!" Mordonna demanded, looking at the man, whose expression was blank, his tinted spectacles hiding any emotion in his eyes. "Tick tock, Master. One way or another, tick tock tick tock, this is the end of Kairos End. Whether or not there'll be anything left is up to you. Tick tock, tick tock,"

~P's E~

Eventually, the wizards of Phoenix's Eye regrouped in the centre of town, near the ruined guild hall. "Is everything ready?" Alice asked, gladly scooping up Hydranoid.

"The harness is set up, and the island's been rigged to it," Tyria reported.

"Good call on using chains instead of ropes, by the way, Edo-Pierce," Lync offered Kynigós, who smiled at the compliment - until he registered the irritating nickname. "It's Kynigós, you dumbass!"

"I can't say I like it much. But I understand why it's necessary," Equivaton growled, uncomfortably shifting in the metal harness that had been mounted on his lower body.

"And me, Master and Sarph have . . finished reworking the Alternative," Alice sighed. The fact that that was necessary still didn't sit right with her.

"So, it would seem that everything's ready," Master Feng observed, looking around.

There was a pregnant moment of silence.

"Everyone, take up positions around Diamauros. Whatever those guardian creatures that attacked Equivaton were, we're going to need them to keep away from the town. We need to keep the control network intact if we're going to make it back into time and space, and because it's strewn throughout the entire town, we need to make sure that the Sempiternal Phoenix takes as little damage as possible," Master Feng explained.

" _Will_ they attack the island? It might be that they only guard time against living things," Artorias pointed out.

"Maybe. Maybe not. Either way, we all need to minimise the damage that they deal to both us and the Sempiternal Phoenix," Master Feng explained. "You all have your orders, so split up and defend the town! We are all going to make it home!"

"Wait, there's one more thing!" Alice suddenly shouted, just before everyone split up.

"What now, he questioned?" Wesley asked.

"Following an incarnating radius to get back into the time stream is one thing, but there's still the matter of reaching our time. We'll be in a mess if we end up two or three hundred years into the past," the orangette reasoned.

"Well, is there anything we can do about that?" Sarph asked.

Alice nodded. "While I was rewiring the Sempiternal Phoenix, I noticed that it was originally supposed to be controlled psychically,"

". . So?" Boomer queried.

"So, I have a theory that if, once we've followed an incarnating radius to the time river, we all think about our home in time and space, the Phoenix's Eye guild hall in X785, the Sempiternal Phoenix will lock onto that memory and automatically go back there. At the very least, we'll probably get close," she explained.

"That might just work," Master Feng nodded, impressed. "Alright, everyone got it? Make sure you're thinking about home while you fight! Remember that that's what you're fighting for! To get back to your home and family! Everyone together, Phoenix's Eye forever!"

"Phoenix's Eye forever!" the wizards chorused, with even Kynigós half-heartedly joining in.

"Now go!" And with that, everyone split, dashing away in different directions.

"I suppose that makes it my cue," Equivaton rumbled. "I'll be off, then -"

"Oi!" The Earth Dragon turned, just in time to see a camo-coated blur dash up his leg and onto his back. "Don't get the wrong idea, but I still have a claim to your head, dragon! So I'm not letting anything else touch you until it's my turn!" Kynigós yelled.

Snarling, Equivaton tossed his head around, hoping to dislodge the hunter now nestled between his wings, but to no avail; Kynigós was holding on tight. "Look, you great brute, it's a good plan! You're powerful enough to smash shit and from here I can cover your blind spot!" he shouted, cocking his rifle.

"With that toothpick?" Equivaton snorted, but, in spite of how angry he was that this whelp dared to ride him like some mount, he has to admit that his proposal was sound. "Ugh, fine. But if you get killed it's your own fault," he growled, spreading his wings and lifting off.

The chains rattled and pulled taut as Equivaton flew away from the island, spiralling towards the great, white, flowing mass that wound through eternity beneath them. Tyria, perched on top of a building, watched, ready to repair any breakages in the hastily created chain.

But it held firm, and the island shook, before starting to move, dragged behind the dragon like a giant chariot.

"This is demeaning," Equivaton grumbled, swooping towards the river of time.

At the 'front' of the Sempiternal Phoenix, near where the ends of the chains attached to Equivaton's harness were buried in the ground, Alice watched, carefully measuring their progress. Lync, ever the protective boyfriend, hovered nearby. "Think it's working? Your radius thing?" he asked.

"We'll know soon enough," she muttered.

Now that they were getting closer, they could make out small shapes fluttering around the white river. Alice squinted, unable to properly make them out. "What are they?"

"Knowing our luck, hostile," the Vestal muttered.

Just then, one of the creatures seemed to decide that it should investigate the massive entity approaching it, and darted away to look around.

Lync spotted it coming, passing Equivaton, which it disregarded after a few cursory glances, and gasped. "What . . the hell . . is that?"

The creature seemed somewhat like an octopus, but with only four, flattened appendages, each of which was lined with little barbs. It had a bulbous head, completely curved at the front, and no eyes, with skin that was a sickly shade of light pink.

"I have no idea at all," Alice whispered in amazement, shaking her head at the eldritch being.

Equivaton cocked his head and looked back at them, and his pupils dilated in fear as he eyed the cephalopod. "That's one of the things that attacked me," he growled, his voice echoing back to the two Brawlers.

"Oh yeah?" Lync frowned. "Airnvention: Rocket!" he invoked, manifesting a projectile on his arm which he held up, targeting the creature.

"Wha - Lync, wait!" Alice shouted, but it was too late, as he had already launched his missile at the being. It impacted, exploding and singing the cephalopod, who reared back, seeming stunned for a second, but then it shook itself, recovered, and turned its head to face the two Phoenixes.

"You'll make it angry," the eighteen-year-old weakly finished, just as the creature's head suddenly split along the middle, becoming a pair of lips, which split open, revealing a mouth filled by three massive rows of sharp, carnivorous teeth and a lashing tongue with a single green eye attached to the end of it. It screamed, a harsh, grating noise that echoed all around, before lancing towards them in a reckless charge.

"Oh, pfft," Lync snorted, bringing his hands together. "Airnvention: Afterburner!" A green magic circle swirled in front of his palms, and a burst of flame was shot out of it, engulfing the creature, leaving it singed and out of it. Suddenly, it rippled and began to disintegrate, eventually leaving nothing left. "Well, that wasn't so hard," he shrugged.

Alice was forestalled from answering by a chorus of similar shrieks from the river of time that they were approaching, and she looked forwards to see that the monster Lync had just cooked had thousands, probably hundreds of thousands, of friends.

"Oh," her hopeless boyfriend mused, his cockiness draining out of him.

She irritably slapped his shoulder. "You're an idiot,"

"Yeah, but I'm your idiot," Lync shot her a shit-eating grin as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a green/silver ball. "Now, shall we give these guys a show?"

Alice raised an inquisitive eyebrow and pulled Hydranoid out of her own pocket. "Feeling any better?" she asked her partner Bakugan, who unrolled and nodded with all three heads. "I'm good to go," he growled.

"Alright," Alice smiled, scooping him up and tensing. Lync mirrored her position, and, in unison, the two threw out Aluze and Hydranoid. "Bakugan, _brawl_!"

~P's E~

Pierce, watching from the edge of town on the east side, saw Aluze and Hydranoid manifest on the outskirts of town to flank Equivaton. "Whoa," he muttered, having never actually seen Hydranoid in his full form before.

The dragon-like creature was massive, coloured mainly purple and black, with a grey underbelly covered in spikes. Large, leathery wings were folded on his back, and a long, lashing tail flexed behind him. Three huge heads towered above, mounted on long necks and encrusted with a thick, barnacle-like armour.

"Well, I can't let those Bakugan toters show me up," he grinned, while quietly making a resolution to go to Vestroia and see if he could Beast Tame a Bakugan for himself. Even though he couldn't see an enemy, he knew there had to be one in the area if Lync and Alice had thrown out their Bakugan. Whipping out his flute, he quickly started playing, running through the low, harsh music needed to summon Knox.

The werewolf emerged, casting him a confused look. "What's going on? My body clock feels all messed up. I can't tell whether it's day or night," he complained.

"It currently isn't either, but we're working on fixing that," Pierce 'explained', a phrase which had Knox cocking his head in confusion. "That made absolutely no sense,"

"It's a long story," the Tamer shrugged. "Point is, we're probably going to be under attack very soon. Whatever comes our way, we need to protect both ourselves, as well as these ruins and the ground we're standing on,"

"Why?" Knox queried, confused.

"We're sort of adrift outside of time and space. We're trying to get back into it, though," Pierce summarised.

". . . Sure, whatever. Just tell me what to hit," the werewolf shrugged, resigned to the fact that he likely wouldn't understand the situation, no matter how much Pierce tried to explain it.

"I'm sure we'll see them soon," the Tamer shrugged.

And then a swarm of four-limbed creatures with giant mouths descended on them.

"I think that's our cue!" Pierce declared, spreading his arms. "Take Over: Phoenix Soul!"

"Right!" Knox nodded, leaping into the fight and digging his teeth into one of the creatures as Pierce's body broke out in orange and red feathers, growing a pair of sixteen-foot wings and seven yellow tailfeathers.

The swarm burned.

~P's E~

"Curious," Sarah observed as one of the creatures, having just been pierced by an Archive laser, continued to attack him, unbothered by the hole in its body. "I wish I still had my sword," he growled, waving around solidified Archive screens like impromptu blades and taking advantage of the fact that they were two-dimensional to slice the critters apart.

When the last of the half-dozen that had engaged him had fallen and dissipated, Sarph triggered his Archive telepathy and shouted across town into each member of his guild's minds; "Everyone! We're under attack! Be on guard!"

"We noticed!" Came half a dozen replies.

"Projectiles don't seem to be effective against them. Try to cut them up!" he commanded.

~P's E~

A bang echoed through the area as Kynigós fired, and a hole appeared in one of the creatures, who snarled, baring its fangs and lashing towards them, seemingly not minding the fact that there was now a hole in its body that . . wait, there was no blood.

"The hell?" the hunter demanded, confused by the fact that the creatures both did not bleed and were undeterred by bullet wounds.

"Projectiles don't seem to be effective against them. Try to cut them up!" Sarph's voice echoed in his head.

"Now you tell me," he growled, loading an explosive cartridge into his rifle and firing again, straight into the jaws of the creature bearing down on him. The bullet promptly exploded, ripping the snarling being to shreds. "Alright! Hey, everyone! Fire and explosions work too!" he shouted, hoping that the mental link would register his words.

~P's E~

"We noticed! TechType: Machine Gun II!" Tyria commanded, blasting a hail of bullets into a cloud of creatures assaulting her, who didn't seem bothered.

"Projectiles don't seem to be effective against them. Try to cut them up!" she subsequently heard the knight's voice in her mind. "Oh yeah?" she muttered. "TechType: Chainsaw!" Her Machine Gun II vanished, replaced by a massive blue blade with rotating silver spikes mounted on it. In a frenzy, the Electrian girl dove into the heaving mass of fanged creatures, hacking and slicing them to shreds.

"Well, that went well," she commented, grinning as she landed atop a pile of twitching, rapidly disintegrating monster parts. She knew she shouldn't enjoy killing these mindless creatures as much as she was, but she didn't have much choice . . . and, as reluctant as she was to admit it, it was kind of fun.

~P's E~

"Hey, everyone! Fire and explosions work too!" Pierce Blastreyne heard his counterpart's voice in his mind with Sarph's telepathy and grinned, breathing a stream of fire from his transformed beak. "True that!" he grinned, gliding above the streets.

Beneath him, Knox, after almost having his leg bitten off, had realised it was more efficient to use his claws and cut them to ribbons. "They just keep coming," the werewolf grumbled.

"So?" Pierce questioned as he soared overhead, feeling euphoric as a result of both the endorphins released into his brain by the Take Over and Raya's reckless nature bleeding into his own personality. "I can do this all day!"

~P's E~

"Ah hear that, partner," Garrotte agreed in battle form, cracking his whip and cutting up another creature. "This 'ere's a piece o' pie!"

He growled as one of them knocked his cowboy hat off, and scooped it up with one hand, attacking the being with the other. "No one touches mah hat, partner,"

~P's E~

"Bleeding Slicer!" Artorias invoked, throwing razor-sharp slicks of blood in every direction and cutting the monsters in two. "We need a name for these things," he resolved.

~P's E~

"We need a name for these things," Grace heard Artorias' voice in her mind as she frantically dodged a lunging being with bent reality.

"Ooh, ooh ooh - ah! Reality Dragon's Pronged Plumage!" Grace tossed her head, and sharp horns of reality sliced the same monster into ribbons. "How about Time-topuses?"

~P's E~

Fleur hummed thoughtfully, as her sword flashed with the words 'PETAL BLIZZARD' and a storm of razor-like petals swirled around her. She thought that that didn't sound right . . ugh, but she didn't know how to use telepathy, so she couldn't toss her suggestion into the ring.

~P's E~

"That sounds silly. I'm thinking 'Time Eaters'?" Lync suggested, sliding a card into his Gauntlet. "Hold that thought. Ability card, activate! Sling Boomerang!" he commanded, and Aluze roared, spinning its bladed rings and cutting up several Time Eaters.

"I like that one," Alice smiled at him, activating a card of her own. "Ability card, activate! Death Trident!" In unison, Hydranoid's three heads roared, lashing forwards and using his horns to cut up the Time Eaters.

~P's E~

"No, that won't work. It's ripped off from Sonic the Hedgehog. Besides, I'm the best at naming things, so I'll name them!" Blanca shouted, eviscerating creatures with plastic knives. "Uh . ."

"Um, how about Temporal Piranhas?" Eve suggested, throwing icy snowflakes like shurikens and shredding the Temporal Piranhas. "Is this right?"

"No, it's not right, because it's not my idea! I say we call them Bigmouths!" Blanca shouted, cutting up another Bigmouth.

Lorus talked over her, addressing Eve. "Rest assured, delicate sidekick, you're doing just fine," he assured her from down the street, using blades of crystallised light. "Sadly, the hero's illusions are useless against creatures who barely use their eyes. That said, your suggestion is too wordy. I would suggest 'chronovores',"

"Sorry," Eve mumbled, and squeaked as a chronovore came a little too close, only to suddenly be impaled by crystals.

~P's E~

"Your vernacular's wrong," Sarph pointed out, continuing to cut up chronovores with sharpened Archive screens. "If they were chronovores, that would mean they eat time itself. Which they don't. How about 'time guardians'?"

~P's E~

"Time guardians works for me, but maybe we should ask the expert?" Boomer suggested, using sound waves to keep the time guardians away from him and Hare. Neither of them had any sharp or fiery attacks, so they couldn't dispatch the time guardians, but his Sound could effectively repel them.

"Expert?" Hare asked, already testy about the fact that she was useless in this fight.

"Master," Boomer clarified, keeping one nervous eye on the Sonic Boom. Luckily, it seemed that the time guardians were only interested in living beings; they were ignoring both the car and the magical ruins around them.

~P's E~

Master Feng Chriona was having the time of her life. Her Soulfire magic was perfectly designed to combat these creatures - indeed, she was starting to wonder if her predecessors had created the technique for the specific purpose of repelling these 'time guardians'. Indeed, she was more worried that the control network of the Sempiternal Phoenix might be damaged in the cross-fire than she was by the actual monsters.

Unfortunately, she had no answers for Artorias. "I'm aftraid I can't help you," she told her most trusted guildmate. "I do like 'time guardian', though," she offered, incinerating a gang of them with a Blast of Soulfire.

However, they kept coming. "There sure are a lot of them," she growled, starting to feel overwhelmed.

~P's E~

"Yeah," Pierce landed and realisedg that Knox was on the verge of collapse, he quickly played the recoil tune, before dodging away from another guardian. He quickly checked his own magic reserves and nodded, satisfied that both he and Raya were capable of maintaining the Take Over a while longer.

Surrounding himself with a burst of fire, Pierce quickly played the snake charmer's tune to summon Cubelios, reasoning that her breath attacks would be a benefit against the time guardians. The purple serpent hissed, spreading her wings to ensure she appeared sufficiently menacing. Immediately grasping the situation, she hissed, blowing a stream of flammable gas through the firewall that Pierce had created. Time guardians shrieked and burned from the row of gas engulfing them.

Pierce frantically spewed another blast of flame as time guardians began to break through the defensive firewall. "We're being overrun," he groaned through his beak.

"There's just too many,"

~P's E~

"Hydranoid!" Alice shrieked, as her Bakugan took a particularly bad blow to the shoulder. "I'm sorry . . Alice," Darkus Alpha Hydranoid moaned, phase-shifting into purple energy and returning to his partner as a ball.

Alice carefully caught and pocketed Hydranoid, before looking back up to see the time guardians turning in her direction. "Um . . Amaterasu Formula," she tried, starting to manifest seals, but she couldn't manage it quickly enough and had to abandon her attempt to leap aside as a guardian lunged at her.

And then Lync was there, having shed his coat and activated his Airnvention: Plating, sliced it open through the head with one of the fins mounted on his wrist. She gasped, staring at his light blue eyes, and almost felt like she was falling in love with him all over again.

Lync gazed back, a smile crossing his metallised lips, and was on the verge of pulling her in for a kiss . . . when a screaming guardian interrupted them. They leapt apart and let the monster pass between them, allowing Lync to bisect it with ease. "This might be a bad time, babe," he pointed out, quickly sliding a card into his Gauntlet. "Ability card, activate! Dora Cannon!" he invoked, and above them, Aluze blasted a clump of guardians into oblivion. But it wasn't enough, and more simply kept coming and coming, and Lync knew Aluze wouldn't be able to reload quickly enough to -

"Open, Gate of the Battlefield! Mars!" And suddenly a veritable cyclone of swords swept in all directions, cutting and dicing the time guardians into pieces. Alice and Lync both gasped as a woman in a tigerskin leotard appeared before them, tossing her sky-blue hair with a dazzling smile. "Need some help?" Mordonna questioned.

"Aren't you with Kairos End?" Lync blinked.

"Technically, yes. But my life isn't worth your deaths, you know?" the Celestial Wizard replied.

"I can't argue with that," Alice admitted. "I'm glad you're on board,"

"Good to be here," Mordonna winked, before turning back to the fight and continuing to instruct Mars.

~P's E~

Suddenly, the world outside the firewall shielding himself and Cubelios went quiet, and Pierce blinked. Nervously, he let the flames die down, and was surprised to see a man in green leather and tinted spectacles impatiently tapping his foot, surrounded by dead time guardians. "Uh, hi?"

Clockwork hummed, taking in the transformed wizard's avian appearance. "Well, you certainly take guild pride seriously, tick tock tick tock,"

"Thanks," Pierce grinned through his beak, before blasting a wave of fire at a pair of guardians darting down behind the Kairos.

~P's E~

"January," Master Feng heard a familiar voice intone, and a wave of light bisected several guardians. She turned, somewhat surprised to see Master Eternity standing a few metres away. "You came back," The incredulity was clear in her tone.

"Don't get the wrong idea, I'm not doing this for you or anything," Eternity huffed in response.

"That may be the case. But even so," Feng shrugged. "What do you say, shall we fight together one more time? For old time's sake?"

The wizened man cast a glance at the Phoenix. "I suppose we shall," he smiled.

Feng extended her hand, and Lycurgus clasped it. "On three?"

Feng smiled, recalling the old joke they had last shared fifty-six years ago, in this same town. "Three,"

Red and black magic circles appeared around their arms, and both wizards shouted in unison; _"Feathers of the Eternal Phoenix!_ " The Unison Raid launched thousands, hundreds of thousands even, of arrow-like blasts of flame, which spread out in every direction, impaling time guardians all around.

The Phoenixes throughout town watched, amazed, as the flaming spell spread outwards, feathery blasts setting every time guardian they touched ablaze and burning them to crisps.

"Whoa. Is Master doing this?" Tyria gasped, standing back from the rapidly disintegrating corpses.

~P's E~

Kynigós watched, enthralled, as the Unison Raid washed across the mobs of time guardians surrounding him and Equivaton. "Holy crap . . is this the power of Earth Land magic?" he gasped, amazed.

"Pfft. That's nothing to a dragon. I've seen better," Equivaton huffed.

"Really?" the hunter gasped, before suddenly remembering something. "Wait. You already tried to get through these creatures before, and you failed. I call bullshit,"

"I'm an Earth Dragon. There's no earth around here, so I'm limited," the dragon irritably defended himself.

~P's E~

Master Feng panted, leaning against a wall for support. "Well. I don't remember it being quite that powerful before,"

"We've both gotten stronger," Lycurgus replied.

"True enough," Feng admitted in reply. "Sarph?"

~P's E~

"Sarph?"

"Yes, Master?" Sarah asked, cocking his head and focusing on his telepathy link once again.

"Broadcast to everyone that we should all meet in the south of the town, near Equivaton. Now that the time guardians are no longer an issue, we need to stick together to get back to our time," Feng commanded, and Sarah nodded, relaying the message. "Of course, master,"

~P's E~

Barely ten minutes later, the eighteen Phoenixes, as well as the three remaining members of Kairos End, had congregated on Alice, Lync and Mordonna's position.

However, there was no conversation. Everyone's attention was on the massive, undulating white stream of energy that now hovered before them, dwarfing the comparatively tiny island of the Sempiternal Phoenix and the dragon pulling it.

"I think that we've seen the last of the time guardians," Master Feng finally declared.

"Yeah, old hag. The fact that we haven't been attacked in almost fifteen minutes proves that," Lync assured her.

"You all ought be aware that fighting the time guardians was only the first of three obstacles we must overcome to root ourselves back in space and time," Master Eternity declared, looking around at the Phoenixes.

"Whoa, hold on. Master, are we sure we trust this guy?" Tyria questioned.

"As much as I hate to admit it, he's spent more than fifty years studying these matters. He's probably the most qualified person here to guide us back to our home," Master Feng sighed. "Besides, we've come to an agreement,"

"Precisely," Eternity nodded.

"Alright, I'll bite. What are the second and third obstacles?" Pierce, who had shut down his Phoenix Soul Take-Over, but kept Cubelios out to give him backup in the event of an emergency, eyed him critically with folded arms.

"Luckily, they're not as difficult to deal with as the time guardians were," Eternity began. "The second is a documented phenomenon that's been known to occur when temporal manipulation is involved. It is called Real Nightmare, and manifests by making alterations to a person's individual timeline,"

"And what the hell does that mean?" Hare impatiently demanded.

"Anything, really. The results are unpredictable. But that's not important. The important thing is, in this situation it will likely manifest as flares of energy that dart around at random," Eternity continued, "and you will only be affected if the flares make contact with your body. So it should simply be a matter of dodging them and we'll all be fine,"

"Uh, what happens if we're not fine?" Grace asked.

"I honestly have no idea," Eternity replied. "In theory, _literally anything_ could happen. That Bakugan of yours could be turned into a human," he gestured to Alice, "you could become an old man, even your memories might be changed so you would have no idea that anything was wrong. Or, you might remember, and be forced to live with the fact that you're different to how you should be for the rest of your days,"

Most of the Phoenixes reflexively gulped, horrified by the implications. _Literally anything . . ._

"And . . . the third?" Alice was almost afraid to ask.

"The Sempiternal Phoenix will start to overlap with normal space and time. For brief moments, parts of Diamauros, and as a result, us, will be transported away from here and into random points in time and space. No matter what, wherever you might end up, you absolutely must not move from the spot you appear in until you are transported back here. If you do, the Sempiternal Phoenix will leave you behind and you will be stranded wherever you appeared," Eternity finished.

"Well, that doesn't sound so hard," Boomer shrugged.

"You underestimate the Sempiternal Phoenix," the Kairos told him. "As you might know, the Sempiternal Phoenix is designed to be operated with psychic power. Therefore, it is most likely going to take you back to events that have occurred in your own lives," he added.

"Oh," the Sound wizard blinked.

"Do you think that you could stand still and watch as a loved one dies before your eyes?" Eternity demanded. "Because you will likely have to if you want to return home,"

The Phoenixes nodded, making various noises of affirmation. Grace gripped at Pierce's hand, nervous, and Pierce returned the squeeze.

"It'll probably start at any minute now," Eternity finished, looking at the river of time that was now all they could see. Equivaton was a silhouette against the white mass, and Pierce Kynigós a tiny, indistinguishable speck. "Dragon! You need to fly -"

Equivaton's angry roar drowned him out, and Grace tugged on his sleeve. "I think he'd prefer if you used his name," she suggested.

"And what -"

"Equivaton," the Dragon Slayer added.

"Right," Eternity tched. "Equivaton!" he shouted. "You need to fly perpendicular to the time stream, and slowly angle towards it!"

"I'm not listening to a rude little pile of bones!" came the answering roar.

The look on Eternity's face would have curdled milk.

"Please, Equivaton! He's a jerk but he knows what he's talking about!" Grace added, cupping her mouth and shouting.

Equivaton's headlong dive into time slowly levelled out and turned into a streamlined glide as he replied; "Alright, fine, but only because you say so, hatchling,"

"Be on guard, it'll start any minute," Eternity commanded, darting away from the others to give himself space. Seeing Master Feng, Mordonna and Clockwork follow their example, the rest of the Phoenixes took advantage of the open space left by the ruins Hydranoid and Aluze had levelled to spread themselves out and prepare to dodge the Real Nightmare energy.

"There!" A flare of white magic had appeared between Tyria and Wesley, and was darting towards the former. She dodged away, and it harmlessly passed by, before striking a piece of rock. The Electrian watched in amazement as the rock spontaneously reshaped itself into a broken chunk of a statue. "What just happened?"

"That rock's timeline was corrupted. Before, it had been used to create a house. Now, it will have, um, had been . . going to . . ." Alice trailed of, stumbling over the conflicting verb conjugations. "Whatever. It used to be part of a house, but Real Nightmare changed it so it has always been part of a statue. Get it?"

"Sort of - whoa!" Boomer frantically moved his arm away from another streak of energy as it danced past him.

"Bent Gravity Loop!" Grace declared, jumping in mid-air as a flash of Real Nightmare lanced towards her, and as she landed she sunk into the ground, passing into a patch of bent space and allowing it to pass over her head. She emerged, falling upwards and upside-down due to her momentum, where another flash of Real Nightmare was darting around . . but, just before it made contact, gravity overcame momentum and she fell, headfirst, back into the rift, sending her plunging back out of the portal which she had originally left and landing with ease.

"Heh, this isn't so tough," Lync observed, dodging a flare of Real Nightmare with ease.

"Maybe for you," Alice responded. Her summery dress wasn't very mobile, and she wasn't all that athletic, either.

Pierce carefully dodged a streak of energy that passed a little too close to his leg for comfort, and watched it go on its way towards Cubelios, unconcerned. The giant snake was large, but sinuous and flexible, she'd have no trouble avoiding it.

But the serpent didn't move, instead watching the dancing dash of white magic with mild interest. Pierce furrowed his brow; _'Why wasn't she dodging?'_

And then it hit him. Cubelios only had a limited understanding of Earthlish! Eternity's warnings about avoiding Real Nightmare had probably gone straight over her head! "Cubelios!" Pierce shouted, suddenly concerned for his Beast. "Move!"

However, it was already too late, and the energy of the time distortion flashed straight into her, absorbing itself into Cubelios' scales. The snake's eyes shot open, and she made a spluttering gurgle, like a struggling car, before collapsing to the ground.

"What's wrong? Was she hit?" Sarph asked, dodging another burst of energy and dashing towards them. Pierce nodded, and the two crouched over her, watching in shock as her body started to ripple and shrink. "What's happening?" the Tamer asked, worried for his Beast.

Sarph, gritting his teeth, flashed an Archive scanner over the afflicted serpent's body. "It appears that Real Nightmare has erased every spell that she's ever been afflicted with from her personal timeline," he observed, watching in bemusement as the myriad of enchantments he registered on the serpent were erased as though they had never existed.

"What's that going to do?" Pierce asked, fear in his eyes.

"I'd say we're about to find out how Cubelios was supposed to be," Sarph explained, and the two, along with several others in the vicinity, watched as scales receded and vanished, erased from time itself. Cubelios hissed in horror as her skin receded and her tail collapsed, breaking in half and forming into . . legs? Her head collapsed, teeth falling out and vanishing as purple hair began to materialise on her now scaleless scalp.

Within moments, Cubelios had transformed into a human girl with short, purple hair, smooth, supple limbs and wearing a set of simple white undergarments. Her eyes were closed and she was gently breathing, seemingly sound asleep.

". . . Huh," Pierce observed, before spotting another blast of Real Nightmare in his peripheral vision and ducking away. "I didn't expect that,"

"Well, I can't say I'm too surprised. She was experimented on by dark wizards, after all. I'm sure they found some way to justify transforming a human into a snake," Sarph shrugged, scooping her up. "We can't just leave her there, or she'll get hit with Real Nightmare again," the knight justified his actions. Pierce nodded his approval.

Now that everyone had witnessed what had happened to Cubelios, they were all doubly aware that they had to avoid the streamers of magic that were darting around. As a result, the next ten minutes passed without incident, and had Boomer humming some unknown, but catchy tune to pass the time, one that several others picked up on and joined in with.

Underneath, the base of the island started to grind against the white river of time, sending shivers through the entire Sempiternal Phoenix.

"It's here. The third and final stage of reentering normal time," Eternity shouted. "The effects of Real Nightmare should decrease at this point, but they won't completely end, so keep an eye out!"

"He said something about being transported randomly throughout time and space," Pierce recalled. "I wonder what that -" Suddenly, the world blurred around him, and his friends, as well as the ruins of Diamauros, vanished.

~P's E - Chapter -: UNKNOWN~

"What the -?" Pierce blinked, looking around. He was suddenly in some kind of old-fashioned looking town. There was a waterfront in the distance, and he spotted a large boat with a sheep figurehead moored there. A woman, around his age, with orange hair, a low-cut shirt and a blue tattoo on her shoulder was nearby, and he waved her over. "Excuse me? Where am I?"

The girl blinked at him in confusion. "Uh . . this is Loguetown. How could you not know that? Also, why are you only wearing one shoe?"

Pierce looked down in mild surprise. "Oh yeah, I kinda forgot that. Anyway, it's a long story. Also, what year is it?" the Tamer added.

"X790. Seriously, what's up with these questions?" she frowned, folding her arms.

"Damnit, five years off," Pierce muttered. "Well, you see, I'm kind of a -"

There was a small 'pop', and he suddenly vanished, leaving the girl he was talking to scratching her head in confusion. "What just happened?"

~P's E - Chapter 68: An Incarnating Radius~

In an instant, Pierce was back in Diamauros, exactly where he was before. "time travel . . ah," he finished, before realising that he wasn't in Loguetown in the year X790 anymore.

"What happened? Where did you go?" Tyria eagerly questioned.

"Some place named Loguetown," he replied, which attracted Artorias' interest. "Loguetown? When? You wouldn't happen to have -" He was cut off, vanishing with a 'pop'.

"I wonder what he was going to say?" Tyria wondered.

"It's starting; our reinsertion into time and space," Eternity observed.

"Remember, everyone, no matter where or when you end up, do not move from the spot you appear in!" Feng added.

"You got it!" Lync grinned, stepping forwards - and suddenly disappearing.

~P's E - Chapter 26: The Dark Mage Unchained~

Alice's grandfather's house, in Northern Electria, in the year X781. Lync appeared next to a tree, and immediately looked around, getting his bearings.

He gasped, realising when and where he had ended up.

In front of him, just feet away, was Prince Hydron, son of the mad despot King Zenoheld, who he had once followed as his liege. And the prince was standing over a black vortex in the ground, within which his younger self was frantically trying to escape.

Hydron, with his lime green hair, faded purple eyes and brown coat, was standing over his past self and laughing, and, as Lync watched, he turned away and vanished, teleported away by Vexos technology.

He remembered this. He'd already tucked the data for the Alternative Weapons System into his glove and thrown it out of the hole for Alice to find - and, even as he thought that, he watched his younger self do the same, tossing his glove in the direction of Alice's house even as his head sunk into the hole.

Lync remembered that, at the last moment, someone had taken his hand and pulled him out of the warp hole. But he'd never seen who it was, and looking around had revealed no trace of his rescuer - _wait, of course!_ The Brawler gasped, as, in an instant, it all became clear.

Recalling that he had to be right where he had appeared in order to be taken back to the Sempiternal Phoenix, Lync broke cover, disregarding Eternity's insistence that he couldn't leave his spot no matter what. He leapt forwards, watching as his younger self raised a hand in a final thumbs-up gesture, and grabbed himself with both hands, frantically pulling and pulling until, with a mighty rush, the past version of Lync emerged from the black hole and landed on the ground. Present Lync noticed his past self had his eyes closed, unwilling to look death in the face. He remembered that too.

Knowing there wasn't a second to lose, he span on his heels and dashed back to the spot on the edge of the forest - and not a second too soon, as time and space snapped back and the Vestal vanished with a 'pop'.

Past Lync, realising that he didn't feel dead, opened his eyes and, in the moments before it disappeared, he saw what he would someday, four years into the future, discover was the billowing green cloak of his own future self. "Whoa, I - I'm alive?!" he gasped in amazement as the black hole closed behind him. "Who was that? Did he save me?" Lync wondered, picking himself up and rushing to the spot where he had seen his saviour. Of course, there was no trace to be found.

~P's E - Chapter 68: An Incarnating Radius~

Lync was thrown into the air, back in the Sempiternal Phoenix, and landed with a thud. "Whoa. This is heavy," he muttered, clutching his head, and looked up to see Alice crouching over him. "Are you alright?"

"I think I just saved my own life," Lync breathed as the retroactive shock of the experience sunk in.

Alice frowned. "You're . . going to have to explain that to me,"

"Later," Lync brushed it off, picking himself up and checking himself over, making sure that all of him had made it back. Arms? Check. Legs? Check. Stylish Vexos fur coat? Che - _oh no_.

Lync screamed, pulling the garment off him and inspecting the ragged, singed edge from halfway up his back. "My coat! Not my coat!" he moaned, before a thought hit him and he checked to make sure the pocket containing Aluze was still there. He sighed in relief, feeling the small sphere of metal in his palm, before gazing despondently at his ruined, beloved Vexos mantle.

Alice wrapped an arm around him. "Hey. It's alright. We can get you another coat,"

"No we can't. It was one of a kind. Custom made for the greatest Ventus user in Vestral," Lync sighed, folding up the ragged remain.

Nearby, Artorias reappeared with another 'pop', looking shaken. "I'm glad that's over," he muttered.

"Where'd you end up?" Lync asked, a cheeky smile playing over his lips. He needed a distraction from the loss of his coat.

"A _brothel_ ," Artorias shivered, shaking his head in a desperate attempt to expunge the memory.

"Oh," Lync blinked. He hadn't expected that. Now he felt kind of bad about trying to have a laugh at the other boy's expense . . .

Meanwhile, Grace peered over the edge of the Sempiternal Phoenix. "Uh, everyone? We're sinking into the white stuff,"

Eternity joined her. "That's good. It means we're getting closer. Everyone, hold on! We're almost there!"

But a loud noise of clanking metal interrupted them, and everyone turned, looking up at the two massive chains that bound Equivaton to the island. There was suddenly a chunk missing from one of the bonds. "Oh no!" Feng gasped. "One of the chains must have been sucked into a time displacement!" she exclaimed.

The island shook and span as Equivaton, who had immediately realised what had happened, desperately tried to correct and account for the loss of one of the chains. "Crap. TechType: Charge Whip!" Tyria shouted, morphing her right hand into an electric whip and sending it flying at the broken end of the chain. Garrotte cracked his own barbed-wire whip and wrapped it around the broken section, morphing into battle form and digging his feet into the ground. Together, the two clung on, holding the linkage together.

"Yay!" Grace grinned - and then the torn-away part of the chain rematerialised and smashed into her, sending her flying into a time displacement, where she vanished with a 'pop'.

~P's E - Chapter 23: Overcharge~

Grace landed on a ruined, dirty road, and immediately recovered and looked around. "Wait, I recognise this place!"

There were ruins all around her, and a familiar red gasbag with the Phoenix's Eye emblem in white was dominating the skyline a few streets away . . and a massive monster with an array of ebony horns for hair, several black streamers hanging from his neck, and blue stripes on his arms and legs.

"I'm in Ghoulia," Grace realised - and, squinting, she noticed her older brother and teammates, minus herself, congregated on the Garuda. "Wait," she frowned, thinking back to something Pierce had told her. When they had been fighting Goliath in Ghoulia, Grace had supposedly appeared out of nowhere and landed the first blow . . except she hadn't, and had no recollection of that.

"No puny mortal can best Goliath! I am invincible!" Goliath crowed, glaring down at the past versions of her teammates and taking no notice of her. "Now, who would like to die first?" he leered.

"Wait. I've got it!" Grace grinned, tearing open a rift and throwing herself into it, appearing in the air above Goliath and targeting the base of his neck, shouting; "Reality Dragon's Roar!"

The past versions of Boomer, Pierce, Tyria, Sarph and Hare watched in surprise as present Grace, her grey-trimmed yellow cloak rippling in the wind, unleashed a blast of Reality energy that smashed into Goliath's neck. "What are you waiting for? Attack!" Grace commanded, before dropping back into the rift of magic and returning to the spot the Sempiternal Phoenix had dropped her.

And then she vanished, returning to Diamauros with a 'pop'.

~P's E - Chapter 68: An Incarnating Radius~

Grace landed on the Sempiternal Phoenix, chuckling to herself. "At least I know I'm not losing my memories," she smiled to herself.

"Grace! Are you alright?" Pierce questioned, dashing over to her.

"I'm fine," she smiled up at him in response, recalling that she had just been hit by a giant piece of chain. It actually hadn't hurt much - she was tough. "Also, I think I just solved the mystery of why I didn't remember attacking Goliath back in Ghoulia,"

"Really?" Pierce raised his eyebrows, before folding his arms with an exasperated smile. "Well, you should be more careful. Remember what the old man said about not moving from the spot you appear in. You got lucky, then, but don't do it again,"

"Actually, I moved too," Lync unabashedly offered, to which Pierce shot him his best 'you're-not-helping' look. "Well, it was to save my past self's life!"

Behind them, the hastily welded chain that Tyria and Garrotte had been holding together finally cracked and burst. "Crap," Tyria breathed, stumbling back, and Garrotte cursed as he returned to normal form. The Sempiternal Phoenix shook, but held strong. "Ah hope that the other chain'll be enough," the cowboy cat muttered.

"Same," Boomer agreed, looking around and wondering if there was anything he could do. But there was a 'pop', and the chubby sound wizard disappeared.

~P's E - Log #4: How Do I Get Into These Messes?~

Checking his surroundings, the Sound Wizard immediately realised where he was. Ghoulia. Though the place looked even more dishevelled than it had been when he'd last visited, if that were possible. "Figures," he grumbled, turning - and saw someone very unexpected.

"Boomer? What - but I just saw you downstairs," Pierce Kynigós spluttered, cocking his head in confusion. "And hey, why do you look so young?" the hunter frowned.

"Edo-Pierce? Why are you in Ghoulia?" Boomer frowned.

The hunter blinked. "Wait - you're still on the Sempiternal Phoenix, aren't you?" Kynigós questioned, disregarding the infuriating nickname for the time being.

"Yeah . . aren't you?" Boomer blinked, and frowned even more when the hunter shook his head. "Not important. But listen; I need you to pass on an urgent message to Blastreyne,"

"Okay, shoot," the Phoenix nodded, registering Kynigós grace expression.

"Tell him, no matter what, or how he feels about it, he absolutely must not -"

~P's E - Chapter 68: An Incarnating Radius~

And then, with a 'pop', Boomer was back on the Sempiternal Phoenix. "What?" he shouted, as though vaguely hoping what was obviously a future version of Kynigós could still hear him. "Pierce must not what?"

Realising it was fruitless, he cursed, shaking his head. "Damnit,"

Meanwhile, Alice had been watching their descending arc into the time stream. "We're almost back in time and space! Everyone, start thinking about home!" she commanded.

"Home," To Pierce, that only meant one place; the Phoenix's Eye guild hall, in the year X785.

"Back home," To Tyria, though, that meant something else entirely; Electria. She couldn't help but think of Professor Atsphuria's College for Practical Education, of Teslon - of the war between Electria and Alvarez.

And, with a 'pop', she, as well as a slice of the floor around her, was sucked into a large time displacement.

"Tyria!" Pierce gasped.

"She'll be fine, boy," Eternity huffed. "But that was an unusually large time displacement. That means we're getting closer," he mused. "Not long now!"

~P's E - Chapter 38: Mark Infinity~

When Tyria landed, she immediately heard the sounds of battle outside. Looking around, she realised she was in a corridor, near a door, and, looking outside, she spotted several of her friends fighting Alvarez soldiers in the courtyard outside. "I'm in Teslon, in the Grand Headquarters," she observed. "And I guess this must have been when Pierce and everyone came to rescue me from Rolfe, last Christmas,"

"Freeze!" Suddenly, a circle of Alvarez guards surrounded her, standing in the circle of stones that had been taken from Diamauros with her, and each levelling a spear at her. "Surrender or die, rebel scum!" one of them barked.

"Like hell!" Tyria grinned, completely ready to throw down - but then, with a 'pop', she was teleported back, along with the entire unit of guards.

A moment later, Totomaru peered into the corridor, convinced that he had heard a mob of Alvarez soldiers. Nothing. It was empty. "Strange," he frowned, rejoining the fight.

~P's E - Chapter 68: An Incarnating Radius~

Tyria reappeared in Diamauros, accompanied by a dozen soldiers in Alvarez uniforms. "Huh?" she blinked upon realising she had somehow brought her assailants back with her.

"Who are they, he wondered?" Wesley questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Alvarez?" Lync blinked in shock.

"Oh, no," Alice moaned.

"Men!" the platoon commander shouted, trying to establish a sense of order in the chaos that had suddenly surrounded them. "Form up on me!" he commanded, before pausing, noticing a flash of white magic dancing around nearby. "What on Earth Land is that?" he asked, extending a spear to poke it.

In response, Real Nightmare flashed around his weapon and darted into his chest. There was a flash of light, and suddenly something was very different about the commander.

"What are you waiting for?" she shouted, glaring at her men, who boggled at her in surprise. "Get moving!"

"But . . sir, you're a . . you're . ." one of the crew spluttered, at a loss for words.

"A what?" she demanded, folding her arms.

"A woman!" the soldier burst out.

The commander frowned. "Yeah? So? I've always been a woman and I always will be, and that doesn't change the fact that I am your superior officer! Now form up!"

"Okay, what the actual hell?" Blanca demanded, looking at her guildmates for answers.

"Real Nightmare must have rewritten his memories," Alice observed. "He now has, always, been a she," She gritted her teeth, shaking her head. "Again with the conflicting verb tenses,"

However while they were in the midst of forming up, a massive, blue/silver fist smashed into them, sending the soldiers flying. Tyria grinned, retracting her TechType: Tectonic, before noticing that some of her guildmates were giving her uncomfortable looks. "What? They're still Alvarez!"

"Attack!" the commander yelled, charging forwards with her spear.

"Right," Boomer snorted in mild amusement, hefting his boombox. "Sonic Blast!"

"Airnvention: Rockets!" Lync agreed, never hesitant to beat up on Alvarez.

Tyria hefted her Tectonics.

Hare just cackled, producing her giant frying pan.

Within minutes, all twelve of the soldiers were down for the count.

Meanwhile, Alice and Eternity were crouched on the edge of the town, keeping tabs on the progression of the Sempiternal Phoenix as it reinserted itself into time and space. "Magnolia, X785. Magnolia, X785," Alice muttered to herself, willing the Sempiternal Phoenix to return to the guild's home.

Eternity nodded. "It won't be long now," he nodded, before pausing, hearing footsteps behind him. He rose, and turned to see who it was. "Ah, Clockwork. Come to lend your assistance?" he raised his eyebrows at the fellow Kairos, who gazed at him through tinted spectacles and mumbled something.

Eternity frowned. "I didn't quite catch that. Mind repeating yourself?"

"Secondary objective complete. TFEI functions suspended. Primary directive now initiated. Tick tock, tick tock," the man stated in an emotionless, expressionless voice.

Eternity frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"Time ticks forward, on towards inevitable chaos," Clockwork stated, before suddenly rushing forwards with arms outstretched.

"What are you -" Eternity spluttered, as his guildmate body-slammed him, sending them both toppling towards the edge of the island.

"What?" Alice gasped, lunging forwards and trying to catch them, but it was too late. Bound up in a mess of limbs, Clockwork and Eternity together went toppling over the edge, falling from the island and plunging into the white mass below.

Alice gasped, only able to watch as the two plunged into the white mass and vanished.

And then Mordonna was there, leaning over the edge with her. "Father!" she shouted, reaching out a desperate hand. But there was nothing to grab.

The blue-haired girl wrested her eyes away and looked at Alice. "What happened?" she asked, conflict playing across her face. "I saw Clockwork . . why did he do that?"

"I don't know," Alice shook her head. "He started talking some kind of nonsense, and then he said something like, 'Time ticks forward, unto inevitable chaos'. Does that mean anything to you?"

"No," Mordonna shook her head, grief-stricken. "I don't know what that's supposed to mean,"

She shakily stood up, and Alice rose with her, taking her hand and guiding her away from the edge, just in case her depression turned suicidal.

Master Feng rushed over, standing before Mordonna, and the Celestial witch turned to her, tears brimming in her grey eyes.

At that moment, Alice spotted something in the corner of her eye. "Mordonna, look out!" she shrieked, lunging for the Kairos - but she wasn't fast enough, and a flash of Real Nightmare struck the young woman in the hip.

Master Feng's eyes widened.

Mordonna gasped, feeling the temporal energy wash through her, as well as tn curious sensation that something had . . broken within her. Some kind of spell . . And then new information, new memories, surged into her mind like a tidal wave.

"Donna!" The name sprang from Feng's lips in horror, and she lunged forwards to catch the girl, even as her grey eyes flashed and the colour drained from them, leaving them a glossy brown.

Mordonna gritted her teeth, shaking her head. "Feng?" she murmured, fully staring at the face in front of her. "Is that you? What the hell happened - why do you look so old?"

Master Feng Chriona's face turned white. "Donna . .? Do you . . remember?"

"Remember what?" she questioned, thinking back - and suddenly, it came to her.

 _A stabbing pain in her chest . . a flashing blade . . blood spurting out of her heart . ._ "Oh, that's right," Mordonna nodded. "I died,"

"What?" Alice gasped, looking between the two in confusion. "Master, what's going on?"

"Yes, Donna. You did die," Feng gently nodded, setting the girl down on her feet. "Fifty-six years ago,"

That certainly seemed to throw 'Donna' for a loop. "What? Is that why you look so old?"

The elderly woman chuckled. "Indeed it is, old friend,"

Suddenly, the ground shook underfoot, and Donna looked around in first confusion, and then panic. "What the - where are we? What's going on? What the hell am I wearing?" she fingered her tigerskin leotard distastefully at this, "Who are these people? Is that a dragon?" she rushed out in confusion.

"It's a _remarkably_ long story," the Phoenix replied. "I'll fill you in on everything later. For now, just avoid the white energy," she commanded, gesturing to a lingering flicker of Real Nightmare, and Donna nodded. "Got it,"

"Alice!" Feng turned back to the orangette, who looked back at her, still confused. "How's the reintegration into normal space-time coming?"

"Oh - uh, sure. Hold on," Alice scrambled back to the edge of the island - and gasped. While she had been distracted, the Sempiternal Phoenix had sunk further into the time stream. It was now so close she could probably reach out and touch it. "We're almost there! Remember, everyone, Magnolia, X785!"

"X-seven- _eighty-five_?!" Donna gasped in amazement, but took one look at Master Feng's face and nodded. "Alright. Almost sixty years into the future. Okay . . wait, where's Magnolia?"

"Nevermind. Just try not to think about anything that isn't the year X785, okay?" Feng sighed.

Equivaton's voice echoed from in front of hem as he flew onwards, starting to dip into the time stream. "Heh heh - that tickles," he chuckled as his front paws disappeared into the whiteness, kicking up streamers of temporal energy behind him.

And, suddenly, as it was splattered with white time magic, the final remaining chain holding the Earth Dragon and the Sempiternal Phoenix snapped and broke apart.

There was a moment of silence as the stunned realisation of what had happened sunk into everyone. Pierce Blastreyne, looking up at Equivaton in dismay, caught the briefest glimpse of Pierce Kynigós' horrified face.

And then the Sempiternal Phoenix shook and pitched forwards, rotating on an axis within the river of time, and what had been like an ocean rushing beneath their feets was suddenly rising up above them in a tsunami, engulfing them. Alice, Master Feng and Donna were gone in a flash, quickly followed by Lync, Tyria and Garrotte, and, looking up, Pierce caught one final glimpse of Equivaton, as well as his counterpart, being sucked into the time stream ahead of them, and then he, too, was being engulfed by the whiteness of time.

~P's E~

And suddenly he awoke, lying on his chest in the flattened ruins of the Sempiternal Phoenix. Pierce leapt to his feet, looking around - and the first thing he noticed was that the sky was blue, and full of clouds.

"Yes!" he whooped. Never had he thought he could be so happy to see something as simple as the blue sky.

His next order of business, of course, was to make sure that everyone else had made it. Looking around, he spotted Grace a few metres away, and rushed over to her -

"Pierce, stop!" a familiar voice shouted, and he turned to see Master Feng Chriona a few metres away, surrounded by his unconscious guildmates. "We need to let them wake up on their own. If we don't give their bodies time to recover from the temporal shock, there might be lingering effects,"

"Oh. Okay," Pierce nodded, taking a deep breath.

"Good news is, though, we made it," Feng grinned, before her smile suddenly dropped. "Well, most of us, anyway,"

"That's aweso - wait, 'most of us'?" Pierce frowned, sliding down the now-lopsided road towards her. "Who's missing?"

"There's no sign of Lycurgus - sorry, Master Eternity," Feng corrected herself, "or Clockwork. Also, when the chain broke, it seems to have severed Equivaton's connection to the Sempiternal Phoenix. So he and that other version of you are missing too. They might not have made it," she sombrely shook her head. "Other than that, though, everyone's fine. Alice and Donna have set up a camp down that way," she told him, gesturing to the bottom of the slope.

"Oh," Pierce digested this. "Well, that's not true. Kynigós and Equivaton made it, I saw them. They entered a bit ahead of us,"

"Is that so?" Feng mused, and smiled. "Well, that's a relief. They probably ended up a bit further into the future, then. We'll just have to keep an eye out a few years down the line,"

"Speaking of that, where and when are we?" Pierce questioned.

"I'm not yet sure," the Guild Master admitted. "I only woke up about half an hour ago. You should ask Alice, she might have figured it out by now," she suggested, again gesturing in the direction of the camp.

"Alright," Pierce nodded, setting off.

Within minutes, he found Alice, Lync, Garrotte and the Kairos girl - Donna, was it? - sitting near a collapsed building. "Oh, Pierce. I'm glad you're alright," Alice smiled.

"Howdy," Garrotte grinned.

"Hey," Pierce settled in next to them and, now that he was on level ground, he could see that the Sempiternal Phoenix had landed on the ground at an angle, rather than being buried in a crater as it had been before. So that was why the road had turned into a hill.

He Requipped his flute. "Kit? You okay in there?"

There was a flash, and the white/red fox yokai materialised. "Morning," Kit moaned. "Urgh, what happened? I feel like I've been hibernating for years,"

"Good question," Pierce nodded. "Hey, Alice? Figured out where and when we are yet?"

"Sorry, no. My Amaterasu Forumlas aren't linked into a global network like Sarph's Archive is. We might have to just wait for him to -"

There was a sudden drumming of footsteps, and the Phoenixes turned in surprise to see what looked like a small army of guards, wearing a mishmash of predominantly green armour, trooping out of the forest.

"Who are these guys?" Lync blinked.

The squadron drew to a halt, and the head, a man with long, flowing green hair adorned by a gold circlet, who was wearing a green cloak that was similar to Lync's but lacking the fur lining over grey, green-trimmed armour, glared down at them and drew his sword. "My name is Sigurd. Who are you, and what are you doing here?" he demanded, levelling the sword directly at Alice, who gulped.

Lync dashed in front of her. "Oi, no one points a sword at my girl," he growled, raising a hand to his Gauntlet.

"Whoa. Hey. Let's all calm down," Pierce suggested, stepping forwards and raising his hands to show he was unarmed. "I'll be happy to explain everything to the best of my ability, but first, could you answer a quick question?

"I suppose," the man raised a condescending eyebrow.

"What year is it?"

"The year?" Sigurd blinked, chuckling a little. "If this is your way of breaking the ice, I'll admit it's not a bad one. But, as you surely know, the year?"

Pierce tensed. Monument of truth.

"Is **X791** ,"

A/N

 **A/N**

 **And here it is! The last proper chapter of "Phoenix's Eye: The Guild Next Door"!**

 **Which is appropriate, because this chapter, I feel, ties the whole story together, answering several questions and raising several more. Where have the Phoenixes ended up now? What was Clockwork doing? Where, or rather when, have Kynigós and Equivaton gone?**

 **Of course, these questions will be answered. Everyone should make sure they're following my** ** _account_** **as well as this story, because soon, I'm gonna post a new story to continue this one. This is a decision I have made because of the monstrous word count that this story has racked up. I don't want casual readers to be scared off from reading my works by a 350,000+ word story.**

 **Speaking of the next part of the story, there are two major things I need to state about it. The first is it's title;**

 ** _Phoenix's Eye: Crowns of Thorns_**

 **The second is this; I have left a few hints as to the direction that the story will be taking in this chapter, hidden in plain sight. Well-informed readers will know what I'm on about. That said, it should be obvious to everyone that more crossover elements are imminent; indeed, this chapter alone contains references to five separate animes, all of which are going to be more involved in the story later.**

 **Now, there's just the last couple of opening and closing themes of this story, and then it's off to the new one! Peace!**


	69. OT5: All Fired Up (Pat Benatar)

Chapter 69: All Fired Up (Pat Benatan)

"Here we go again," Pierce shrugged philosophically as Boomer pressed play on his boombox.

"I'm still confused as to why we're even doing this," Kynigós admitted, folding his arms. "Is this even canon?"

"I find it's better not to think about that," Grace advised. "Now come on, the song's about to start!"

"You said it," Boomer confirmed. "Everyone! Positions!"

 _Livin' with my eyes closed, goin' day to day_

Team Pierce, with Artorias, strides down the main street of Diamauros. Their steps are in time with the beat.

 _I never knew the difference, I never cared either way_

Blanca, Eve, Wesley, Lorus, Garrotte, Sensho, Totomaru and Fleur follow them.

 _Lookin' for a reason, searchin' for a sign_

Alice, Lync and Masquerade stand together, facing away from the cameras. Lync has his arms wrapped around the other two, and Alice leans into him while Masquerade flinches away.

 _Reachin' out with both hands, I gotta feel the kick inside_

Kynigós, standing in the desert, grins and hefts his shotgun.

 _All fired up (now I believe there comes a time)_

The Constructosaur-X, with Boomer standing on its head, roars at Eurydice and her Cadaver Golem.

 _All fired up (when everything just falls in line)_

Masquerade poses, smirking, as Aberforth explodes with Amaterasu Circles behind him.

 _All fired up (we live an' learn from our mistakes)_

Donna looks up to find Master Feng crouching over her. Both smile.

 _All fired up, fired up, fired up, hey_

The screen rapidly cuts between Boomer launching Mega-Bass, Tyria punching with Tectonics, and Pierce using Soler Blast with Phoenix Soul.

 _Ain't nobody livin', in a perfect world_

The camera zooms through the ruins of Diamauros, emerging upwards into a cloudy sky.

 _Everybody's out there, cryin' to be heard_

The camera comes to Eternity, standing at the top of a rocky outcropping, looking down.

 _Now I got a new fire, burnin' in my eyes_

Master Feng stands at the bottom, at the entrance to the ruins of Diamauros, glaring up at him.

 _Lightin' up the darkness, movin' like a meteorite_

Eternity leaps downward, bringing his staff forward to attack, and Master Feng throws up her hands to defend. Fire flares in all directions as they clash.

 _All fired up (now I believe there comes a time)_

The two Guild Masters clash in the town square; Feng is knocked aside.

 _All fired up (when everything just falls in line)_

Grinning wildly, Eternity slams his staff into the ground as it glows with golden light.

 _All fired up (we live an' learn from our mistakes)_

The massive magic circle around Diamauros flares with golden light.

 _All fired up, fired up, fired up (the deepest cuts are healed by faith)_

The entire group stands together on the road leading into Diamauros as the golden light of the Sempiternal Phoenix flashes behind them, painting the Phoenix's Eye emblem into the sky behind them.

"Seriously, when is this happening? We were all in the town square when the Sempiternal Phoenix activated for the first time, and I got separated from the lot of you after that . . what the hell is going on? And where's Equivaton?" Kynigós demanded, very confused.

"I'm pretty certain that either Grace is messing with reality, or this is all a dream," Sarph shrugged.

"That's the best answer I'm going to get, isn't it?" the hunter groaned.

A/N

 **A/N**

 **Yes, Kynigós, it is! Peace!**


	70. CT5: Still Alive

Chapter 70: CT5: Still Alive

The screen is black, and a warped, distorted voice, sounding old and young, male and female, all at once, starts singing.

 _This was a triumph._

 _I'm making a note here; HUGE SUCCESS._

 _It's hard to overstate my satisfaction._

An indistinct, humanoid silhouette begins to appear in the distance.

 _And into the sky,_

 _I'm going to rise, like a,_ Phoenix _._

 _For the good of all of us,_

 _Except the ones who'll be dead._

The figure is clearly that of a human-like being, but it's features cannot be made out.

 _But there's no sense crying over every mistake._

 _Everything's right there for my dominion to take._

 _And my magic is wrought,_

 _And new lessons are taught,_

 _For the people who are still alive._

The image begins to blur, as though static is playing across the screen, and the silhouetted figure is made even more indistinct and blurry.

 _And believe me, I am still alive._

 _I'm doing magic and I'm still alive._

 _I feel fantastic and I'm still alive._

 _While you're dying I'll be still alive._

 _And when you're dead I will be still alive._

The screen is now completely overtaken by static; nothing can be made out anymore.

 _Still alive._

 _Still al-_ ** _01010100 01101000 01100101 00100000 01100011 01100001 01101110 01101111 01110000 01111001 00100000 01110111 01101001 01101100 01101100 00100000 01110010 01101001 01110011 01100101_**

A deranged laugh echoes in the distance.


	71. Epilogue: Some Far Away Day

Epilogue: Some Far Away Day

 **Final reminders; follow my account so that you won't miss the new story! And vote on the poll for favourite character!**

 **A/N**

A/N

 ** _Previously, on Phoenix's Eye . . ._**

 _"Remember I mentioned that there was one more S-Class wizard in Phoenix's Eye?" Pierce asked._

 _"Every now and then she comes by the guild and gets a job from the back of the S-Class board," he explained. "But she never takes any jobs that aren't SS-Class or higher,"_

 _"You shouldn't be so afraid. Faraday is immensely powerful, but she is not a threat to her guildmates," Artorias explained._

 _The conversation was abruptly brought to a halt as the doors of the guild hall swung open, as was all sound in the building. Every eye watched the door, and the slim figure, wrapped in a grey cloak with green trim that obscured her entire body and her face, covering her hair, and hanging to the ground to block her feet from sight. The only gap in her cloak was her eyes, which were a dull, almost burnt orange and remained fixed forwards, like an owl's. There was a pack on her back, from which protruded four staves, two above each of her shoulders; one made of wood that ended in what looked like a magnifying glass which bore a crown of white feathers, the second made of silver metal that ended in what resembled a spanner, with a bronze gear wedged into it, the third also metal, but black, crowned by a black ball covered in fuzzy fabric, and the fourth made of a green substance that ended with a simple white leather ribbon around it._

 _~P's E~_

 _"See, my name's Ariel. Ariel Nagato. And I can't be killed,"_

 _"You should meet Cardinal. I'm sure he could relate," Ariel chuckled._

 _Zeref paused. That name sounded vaguely familiar . . . but he'd heard so many names so many times in his four hundred-odd years of living, he just couldn't place it. "Who?"_

 _Ariel paused, and blushed. "Oh - heh, whoops. I wasn't supposed to say that . . could you do me a favour and forget you heard that, please?"_

 _~P's E~_

 _Ariel, who was sitting with Sarah in the guild hall for dinner, suddenly screamed and clutched her head with her hands. "The . . the st_ ** _0_** _rm . ._ ** _1_** _t's gr_ ** _0_** _w_ ** _1_** _ng str_ ** _0_** _nger . ." Ariel moaned, clutching at her head._

 _Suddenly, whatever had happened to her seemed to end, and she shot bolt upright and looked around. "Something's happened to our guildmates. In Diamauros,"_

 _"It's too late," she continued, breathing heavily. "They're . . ."_

 _"Gone,"_

 _~P's E~_

A day after the Sempiternal Phoenix vanished from the year X784, Faraday appeared, standing at the edge of the massive crater where the town of Diamauros no longer stood.

"So. They're gone," she muttered.

"Yes. They are. Into the storm," Ariel Nagato, fellow Phoenix's Eye wizard and receptionist for the Nest, appeared next to her, nodding. A gust of wind blew behind her.

Faraday turned, raising an eyebrow behind the mask that covered her face. "Ah. I wondered if you would come,"

"Of course I did. It's my job, after all," Ariel shrugged.

"So. Now we wait," the SS-Class mused.

"Indeed," the greenette agreed, nodding. "Six years, you said?"

"That's how it happened last time," Faraday confirmed.

"Ah. Odd . . could swear it was seven," Ariel mused, before shrugging it off. "Then we wait until X791," the water witch sighed. "You know, I'm gonna miss Eve and Blanca. And Tyria, and Fleur, and Alice,"

"Don't worry. If memory serves, you'll see them all again. And a couple of new friends, too," the cloaked witch reassured her. "Besides, there is one thing about the next six years I'm looking forward to,"

"What's that?" Ariel asked, raising an eyebrow.

" _Six entire years_ without that Fairy Gildarts Clive trying to flirt with me," Faraday murmured in satisfaction. "That'll be a refreshing change,"

"Fair enough," Ariel nodded. "You've stockpiled enough to keep the guild afloat, of course,"

"Naturally," Faraday nodded. "Don't worry, I have everything figured out,"

"That's good. Cardinal will be pleased," Ariel nodded. "In fact, this might just win him over in regards to you,"

The older woman stifled a chuckle. "I'd be surprised," she muttered, before reaching into her coat and drawing out two cups and a bottle. The cups levitated in the air as she poured ale into the two of them, and dropped the bottle to the ground, letting it shatter into pieces and spill the remainder of the crimson liquid across the ground. "So. A toast?" she suggested, taking one of the glasses.

Ariel took the other, inspecting the contents curiously. "You know this alcohol stuff doesn't affect me?"

"Don't ruin the moment," Faraday sighed, and the water witch chuckled, taking the other glass. "Alright. To some far away day when we're all together again?"

The glasses let out a pure, clear note as they were tapped together, and Faraday repeated the toast. "To some far away day, when we're all together again,"


End file.
